


Falling Pieces

by illusorygentleman



Category: Victorious
Genre: F/F, F/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-08
Updated: 2013-06-08
Packaged: 2017-12-14 08:55:37
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 39,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/835049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/illusorygentleman/pseuds/illusorygentleman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The 4th story in my One Night series. After the summer of love, how do the Hollywood Arts kids deal with the fallout?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Falling Pieces

**Author's Note:**

> Picking up where Carousel Nights left off, things will remain primarily focused on what's happening at Hollywood Arts. Thanks so much for reading and please comment and review.

It was nearly 11 pm when Jade dropped Cat off at her house before heading to her own home to crash in her bed. As Jade was driving to her house, she felt like she needed to talk to someone. Clearly the ‘I’m going to share my boyfriend with another girl who doesn’t actually live a thousand miles away from him’ thing was weighing much heavier on her mind than she had intended. An answer suddenly appeared in her mind and she drove right past her turn.  
As she pulled on the edge of the Vega’s driveway, she raced towards the door, trying to be quiet in case people were sleeping. There were some dim lights coming from the den, so she took the risk and knocked on the door. There were some voices inside, and the sound of scrambling before the door finally cracked open.  
Tori looked like a hot mess; her usually pristine straight hair was filled with tangles, and her clothes looked like they were fitting her all wrong. She wasn’t wearing a bra either, so she must have been sleeping, Jade thought.  
“Oh wow… sorry. I didn’t wake you, did I?” Jade was already backing up again from the doorstep.  
“Ummm… no. It’s cool. I was just… you know.”  
“Yeah… this may have been a bad call I can-.”  
“Is that Jade?” came a male voice from inside. The mystery was quickly dissolved as the door opened more to reveal a shirtless Beck. No matter how much she couldn’t stand her ex, Jade couldn’t help but let her eyes linger on his abs. “S’up?”  
Tori looked embarrassed to be standing there like this, her eyes shut, as if she was wincing in pain.  
“Yeah… this was definitely a bad call… I’m just gonna go-“  
“That’s a good idea,” Beck said, his voice getting snarkier by the second, “Tori’s busy right now.”  
“Fuck you, Beck.” Jade’s eyes narrowed at her former beau, burning with anger, rage, and pure hate. “Tori, just… give me a call later. When you’re not,” her eyes traced the two of them, trying to hold back her disgust, “busy.”  
Jade turned and started back to her car, trying to not be pissed at her friend for being so dumb and dating that asshole of an ex boyfriend. Behind her, Tori was giving Beck an annoyed look, and then chased after Jade.  
“Sorry…” the brunette Latina managed to get out as she caught up with the punk teen.  
“It’s whatever… he’s your boyfriend, and not my business.” She did not even attempt to make eye contact as she unlocked the car door.  
“Jade, stop. Please… I’m sorry about Beck. I’m glad you made it home safe.”  
Jade stopped moving, but she crossed her arms, clearly annoyed, and rolled her eyes. “I’m sorry too, I guess… Sorry about interrupting your… thing.”  
“Anniversary.”  
“Which one? When you started dating or when you-”  
“Ha ha…Very funny, West… he insisted that we celebrate the month that we’ve officially been dating. Even bought me this.” Tori inserted her fingers into the collar of her shirt and produced a necklace. It was gold and shiny, creating a nice contrast to her tanned skin. At the base, there were two hearts entangled. Jade didn’t have to look at it for very long to recognize the necklace, but she certainly didn’t hate looking at her.  
“Wow… that’s his grandmother’s, right?”  
“How’d you know that?” Tori said, her own arms crossing now.  
Jade sighed and rolled her eyes, “Vega… I dated that dude for two years. We were each other’s firsts. For a while I believed I was in love with him and he was the one. I know his tricks, and that’s the necklace he gave me for my birthday, which I gave back when I dumped him, and then he gave back to me at some other time, and then I left it when I gave his stuff back.”  
“Oh… ok.” Tori knew there had to be some history there, but to hear Jade actually qualify her fears about her history with him hit the youngest Vega like a brick.  
“I’m sorry… I don’t mean to make you feel like it’s not important… it just-“  
“No, I understand.” Tori was very intent on getting away from this topic, her fingers still playing with Beck’s gift. “How did everything wok out with you?”  
Jade leaned against her car, ‘It’s gonna take some time to explain…”  
“I got time,” Tori said, giving a small smile and leaning against the car, close beside her, and sliding strands of her dark brown hair over her ear, turning her head from her house where a shirtless Beck had his hands raised in exasperaton. Getting the hint, he finally went back inside.  
Jade smiled back, happy that she was sticking it to Beck by making him wait. “So, get a load of this: I not only met with Sam, but had a good discussion with her, almost physically fought her, and then all three of us just…” Jade took a deep breath, a smile creeping across her lips, “worked things out.”  
Tori was wide eyed and grinning, just as much out of surprise as excitement. “You little slut… you had a three way?! Tell me everything.”  
Jade laughed at how childish she was being. “It just kinda happened. Not like it was my first anyway… not to mention… didn’t you have one with Cat and that Carly girl at the camp?”  
“Yeah, but that was just us girls messing around. You had a guy in yours.”  
Jade rolled her eyes. “Anyway… the three of us talked, and we decided to keep things open. I can keep my long distance relationship with Freddie, and so I guess Sam and I are sharing.”  
“You’re a better person than me… Remember when me and Carly were dating the same guy. I wanted to kill him.”  
“Yeah, but the big difference is that everyone involved here knows the score.” Jade pressed her finger to Tori’s chest, poking to accentuate her point.  
“I guess so… So that’s how you left it?” Tori started to mimic the action, but found Jade’s chest was much softer, and lost part of her finger in Jade’s cleavage. The goth teen certainly didn’t hate this attention, even though she knew it was accidental.  
“Pretty much, but-”  
“HEY, BABE!” Beck shouted from the front door, still shirtless as he poked his upper half out, “COME ON BACK WHILE WE STILL HAVE THE HOUSE TO OURSELVES!”  
Tori looked at Jade and the two shared a half smile, before Jade motioned for her to go. Tori grabbed Jade for a hug before turning and heading towards her boyfriend. Jade watched her go for a few seconds, taking in her cute ass before getting back in the car and heading home.  
“Took you long enough…” Beck said as Tori walked past him.  
“Don’t even start with me… we need to talk about your gift.” She began taking the necklace off.  
“Babe, don’t take it off… Look, I’m sure Jade told you that I gave it to her… and that’s true. When we were dating, I thought she was special enough to share something important, and I was clearly wrong. Plus, it looks… way, way, better on you.” His fingers traced her neckline where the necklace resided, feeling the edge of her breasts as he moved.  
“You should have told me up front, Beck. I’m glad you shared this with me, but next time there’s some history, you might as well just share it up front. Or give me gifts that other people haven’t used.”  
“Never again… I promise,” he said, stroking the side of her face. “Though if you would have just ignored the door, we could have avoided this whole fiasco and you could just focus on sharing our anniversary with me.”  
“I’m sorry that my world doesn’t just revolve around you…” she said, trying to get the last word when his hand shot out and grabbed her arm a bit too tightly as he shut the door.  
“I bet I can make you rethink that,” he said, placing her hand on the front of his pants, showcasing his growing erection.  
Tori tried not to focus on his tight grip and grinned a bit as she rubbed the outline on the front of his pants. “I don’t know…You were kind of a jerk to Jade, Beck, and that wasn’t cool.”  
“Well, maybe she shouldn’t have interrupted us while we were in the middle of something,” he said lifting her shirt over her head.  
“It’s not like she knew what we were-“  
Beck pushed away from her, looking pissed. “Why the fuck are you defending her?”  
“Because she’s my friend. Why are you being such an ass?” Tori crossed her arms over her exposed chest.  
“Because she made my life hell for two years, and she was also a total bitch to you since the day she met you. I don’t get why you would ever even talk to her, let alone be friends with her… I don’t think I like that.”  
“Well, we are friends now, so you’re going to have to deal with it.”  
The two stood in silence, just staring at each other, before Tori finally broke the silence as she put her shirt back on, feeling ashamed of herself.  
‘I think you should go. I don’t know what’s wrong with you, Beck, but you need an attitude adjustment.”  
“What the fuck ever,” he muttered, grabbing his shirt off the floor and leaving, barely making it out the door before she shut the door on him. A few minutes later, she heard his truck start and he was gone.  
Tori punched a sofa pillow a few times before starting to get really emotional. She considered texting Jade to come back, but she decided she just wanted to be alone. She sat in the dark, her fingers playing with the necklace still. She couldn’t help but think about what Jade had said about Beck’s history.   
The younger Vega didn’t have long to herself before her sister crept into the house, before turning the kitchen lights on.  
“Trina? What are you doing out so late?”  
“You’re one to talk… Having boys over at this time. You know dad would lose his shit if he knew Beck was here alone with you.”  
“What?” Tori said, trying to maintain her innocence.  
“Don’t be like that. I’m not going to rat you out to mom and dad.” Trina was now raiding the fridge for food.  
“No… I mean, Beck left like ten minutes ago. How did you know he was here?”  
“Oh ummm…” Trina was trying to come up with a decent lie, as she stuck her head further into the refrigerator.  
“Just tell me, Trina.”  
“Fine… I was in the car with Robbie; up the street, of course, in case Dad came home. So, we were getting very… busy, especially since I can’t see him during the day.”  
Tori gave her sister a very annoyed glance.  
“Don’t give me that look, Tori. I have a very important social role and Robbie doesn’t really… fit in. I do like him, and he is really sweet, but I just can’t afford to let anyone know we’re together. It’s social suicide.” She seemed so sincere, biting into a banana, as if what she said wasn’t incredibly offensive.  
“That’s really awful, Trina.”  
“Well, so is he… You know Robbie… he’s just so embarrassing. Especially with that creepy-ass fucking puppet.” Trina downed the entire banana before continuing. “The other night, get this, he tries to incorporate Rex into us… being together.”  
Tori had a confused look on her face, but after some pretty graphic gestures, she put the matter to rest. And never wanted to think about it again.  
Diving back into the fridge for a water, Trina emerged from the kitchen and plopped down. “So, Beck seemed kinda pissed when he left. What happened with that?”  
“I really don’t want to get into it, Trina… Beck was just a real jerk, and I sometimes wonder if there’s actually something between us. I mean, I like him… maybe even love him, it’s just-”  
“Tori!” she interrupted, “Who the fuck cares? He’s fuckin’ hot as fuck.”  
“Sorry… I forgot I was talking to the shallowest person on Earth. You wanna try and add in some more f-bombs in there?”  
Trina extended her middle fingers out as she got up and walked up the stairs to her bedroom, leaving Tori alone again in the den. She had every intention of walking up to her bed and going to sleep, but after sitting on the couch, all her willpower was gone and she crashed.  
______________________________________________________________________

Several miles away, a moving truck was finally leaving the driveway it had been parked in all day, leaving two men standing outside the big house. The older man, Jeremiah Stark, admired his new home and patted his son on the back before walking inside. The younger man turned and walked to the edge of the new driveway. He stood just short of six feet, and was stocky, but not fat, his muscle girth being the primary ingredient to his solidity. The teen boy had sandy blonde hair, and piercing blue eyes that he had always been complimented on.  
Nathan stood in the empty driveway and looked out at the Hollywood Hills before him, wondering how in the world he and his dad were going to adapt to living this way after spending so many years working on that ranch in Texas. But then his dad struck it rich and became a big time producer, so now he was stuck in this smog ridden city full of materialism and self flagellation.  
He couldn’t even go to a normal high school. His dad had insisted on enrolling him in some fancy art school; Hollywood Arts, they called it. I’m going to be so out of place, he thought. Apparently, you have to audition to be let in, but he got to skip that step once the school got a check for $40,000 from his dad. If this became common knowledge with his peers, he was screwed. At his old high school, he excelled in academics and athletics and was on his way to being an honor grad if he kept it up. This place seemed to lack both of those things, meaning he was probably going to stick out horribly once school started back in a couple weeks.  
Please, he silently prayed to himself as he walked into the house, please let there be something worthwhile in this town. A deep sigh later, and he shut the front door behind him, disappearing inside, and headed up to his new room to unpack his life.  
___________________________________________________________

 

 

The next three weeks flew by for everyone as they prepared to return to school. The Vega household was constantly busy as both girls were constantly on the move, either with dates or secret meetings with their boyfriends. The two tried to make time for friends, but Tori felt like she was seeing Robbie and Andre very little anymore. She only really saw Cat in passing, as she seemed much more private and secretive than normal, but Tori believed she would be back to normal once school started. Almost all of her time was spent with Beck, either hanging at her house or his trailer. They never seemed to go on actual dates, which was a bummer to Tori, and he usually just wanted to have sex, which, while exciting and intense, usually left her feeling unfulfilled. Though lately, he was acting much more erratic, which worried Tori more each day, but he always said it was from a headache. Whenever Beck upset her, she would always seek out Jade, out of spite to a degree, and the two would spend time together. It was weird, Tori thought, that they were friends now, and each had been affected in a weird way. Tori now loved the gory and artsy movies that Jade was into, and Jade was far more friendly, and the two starting having little sing-off karaoke sessions whenever they would hang out. But really, Tori couldn’t wait to be back in school and have some sense of normalcy again. Well, whatever passed for normal at Hollywood Arts, at least.  
Trina’s final days before school were very different. Unlike her sister, she didn’t have a tight circle of coincidentally interesting friends to hang out with. Most of her time was spent shopping and watching television. Sometimes she would go see Robbie at his place, or if they could be all alone, they would spend time at her house. When they would spend time together, it was usually spent hurriedly having sex, which was almost always fantastic, and she loved how he would worship her body. But Robbie was a geek, and she couldn’t have anything to do with him if she wanted to anyone to like her. Tori knew of course, and she was pretty sure Beck might know since he and Robbie were best friends, not to mention that he and Tori had nearly caught them a few times. She had no idea what she was going to do when school started back, and Robbie wanted them to be a public couple.  
Robbie was torn with his current social standing. On one hand, he was dating a girl that was way out of his league, who was willing to sleep with him, who had, with the possible exception of Jade, the best rack he had ever seen, and who really was a good person deep down. The problem was, the good person might be a bit too far down. Since they first got together, she had kept their relationship extremely secret, and the only person that knew was Tori. Beck may know too but he certainly wasn’t bringing it up if he did. Actually, here lately, Beck wasn’t much of a talker anymore. He always looked tired, and seemed to always have a headache, yet every time someone would offer him something to help relieve, he’s say no, and that he had something that would help. Then he’d tell everyone but Tori to get out or leave him alone. He was worried about his friend, but maybe that was just his way to have some alone time with Tori. God knows, Robbie thought, I’d have done the same thing if I had a shot with her.  
Beck was keeping mostly to himself these days. He had always been a pretty private person, but the last couple months had been especially solitary. A lot of it was due to trying to focus on Tori, but it was moreso because of him not feeling well. He wasn’t sick in the traditional sense, but he certainly felt like hell. He hadn’t told anyone, but while he was at the camp, he lost an aunt that he was very close to. No one even bothered to tell him until he was back home. Charged with the task of cleaning out her house, Beck stumbled across her medications. Ambien, Vicodin, and Oxycontin. Three very high profile drugs that he considered selling, but after the guilt of taking them took hold, he found the only way he could escape it was by taking the pills. The Ambien helped him sleep, and the other two dulled his depression and guilt enough that he became reckless. He knew he was being too angry and rough with Tori and that he was acting differently, but a pill and a glass of water later, he couldn’t care less. Beck was clearly on a downward spiral before the school year even began, and if it wasn’t for genuine feelings for Tori, he wouldn’t even still be in this town. He certainly never felt that way with Jade, and her continued presence in his life was really becoming annoying. No, Beck thought, turning down the lights to get some more sleep, I’m really not looking forward to going back to school.  
Jade spent nearly every moment of the proceeding weeks in her room. Only when Tori would call her over to hang out or the really rare occurrence of hanging out with Robbie, Andre, or Cat, would she have any interaction. Other than that, she watched movies, listened to music, chatted with Freddie online, or tried to let her imagination recreate some of her favorite moments of their time together- and that was her life. Despite having serious doubts about sharing her guy with someone else, she was making peace with it now, and was actually beginning to like talking to Sam when the semi-awkward opportunity would arise. Despite all the feelings she had for Freddie, the truth was, she went to bed alone every night- a fate she couldn’t imagine that Freddie and Sam were also suffering from. I asked for this… I did this to myself, she repeated in her mind most days. It honestly felt like Jade was putting her whole life on hold for Freddie, and that when he would do something, would be when she would finally start moving. The only person who ever really spent time in Jade’s room was Tori. Their sleepovers had become a regular thing, and somehow, neither had succumbed to any kind of temptation. It wasn’t for a lack of trying on Jade’s part; one really lonely night, Jade found herself craving cuddling up with the giddy brunette, but Tori kept things very innocent. Cat came to see her a couple times, but didn’t stay for very long for some reason. Ever since the Seattle trip, Cat had been acting very strangely and, given the redhead’s inability to handle things that upset her, Jade was a little worried about her.  
Cat Valentine preferred girls. There was no question about it anymore. She thought she was in love with her best friend, but ever since Freddie had shown up, Jade’s attention had been elsewhere. Carly was great too, but she was far more bi than anything, which was fine for the sensitive redhead, they could always have fun together. What Cat was really craving in her life was love. She knew finding love at 17 was not an easy task, but the need for affection added with the weight of her secret, bother were weighing her down. She wished she could tell everyone, but there was no telling how they would react. She couldn’t really be around Jade knowing she loved someone else more, and she didn’t think any of her friends would accept her if they knew that she liked girls. Tori might understand since they fooled around at the camp together, but she was always with Beck… and he was starting to scare her. Robbie had a serious crush on her, so telling him would be awkward, though lately he was being very private as well. The only person who stayed the same was Andre, but the two of them were not that close, and Andre wasn’t exactly known for keeping secrets well.  
Andre Harris was starting to resent his friends. It wasn’t due to anything that they had done, per se, but he resented the fact that they had all gone through some changes and he didn’t seem to be a part of that. He had always considered Tori his best friend since the girl had shown up at the school a couple years ago, but lately, she barely had or made time for him. It had started when she started dating Beck, who had gone through some pretty serious changes himself. It would seem like an isolated incident, but all his friends were acting very differently since they went to that camp up in Canada. Jade had met some guy from Seattle at this camp, and apparently was all about him, and was acting like a completely different person. Robbie wasn’t much better. He had become really secretive over the last couple months, and would leave a lot of their hangouts to go do some random thing. Cat was kinda the same, but every time he would talk to her, she would seem far less happy than usual, as if something was weighing heavily on her mind. With all of his friends busy with one thing or another, most of his summer was spent taking care of his grandmother. Andre could not wait for school to start back so he could finally get away from this monotony.  
_______________________________________________________________________

The first day of school at Hollywood Arts went by without any real hitches. There were a couple new teachers around, one of which, who Trina had, was supposedly really cute, but the other friends didn’t have his class. Sikowitz’s class was relatively simple. A few new kids were pulled into improv exercises, and he explained, albeit very strangely, what the class was going to be like. He then told two thirds of the class that they probably wouldn’t do much this year since they didn’t seem like “main character material.” All of these students left, but the coconut loving teacher, asked the others to stick around. It wasn’t until this moment that he realized that Beck wasn’t there.   
“Where is Mister Oliver today? It is a very important day for him to have to miss.”  
Tori had actually been wondering the same question since this morning when he wasn’t in the hallway.   
“We have no idea,” she said, semi-quietly as everyone exchanged looks.  
“Maybe he was brutally stabbed and then run over by a truck.”  
“Jade!” Sikowitz said, via his usual dramatic shouting, “Good to see the summer hasn’t changed your oh, so sunny disposition.”  
“That was kinda mean, Jade,” Tori spoke up.  
“Sorry…” she sneered back, crossing her arms.  
‘Well…” Sikowitz continued, “I suppose you all can fill Beck in on this. I have a new play coming up and I know that my favorite students are on their way out. So, I’d like for you to go out and find replacements. Trying to look for talent myself is pretty boring.” The friends looked around, trying to understand what exactly they were supposed to do. “That is all. Go forth children and make my life easier.”  
Everyone grouped up and headed out the door, meeting several feet later in front of Tori’s locker.  
“So, anybody else weirded out by Sikowitz making us like audition people?” Andre said, opening his locker and getting some M&M’s.  
“I think it’s his way of saying he trusts us,” Robbie said, grabbing a handful of candy from Andre, and throwing them in his mouth, “we jush need to find people like ush.”  
“People like us?” Tori shut her locker incredulously, “I thought the whole point of this school was that everyone is different and everyone has a talent that is unique?”  
“I would never have said this a year ago,” Jade said, sipping her coffee, “but Vega’s right. This assignment is bullshit-”  
A squeal from Cat prompted Tori to cover the sensitive redhead’s ears, knowing that any sort of profanity always made her freak out.  
“Sorry, Cat, but it doesn’t change the fact that what Sikowitz is doing is really awkward and unnerving. However, enough people around here are afraid of me, so making people audition for me won’t be a problem.”  
Andre looked incredulously at Jade, “Yeah… you do that. I guess we should start with the people in class with us. There was this girl, and oooh-“  
“Andre!” Tori exclaimed, “This is not a dating service. We have work to do. If you think she’s talented, why don’t you give her to one of us girls, and you can find a guy to test out.”  
“My brother had to be tested,” Cat said randomly, earning some odd stares. “He didn’t like it.”  
“Yeah… ok,” Robbie said, patting Cat on the arm. “So I guess we have a plan now. Anybody know what’s up with Beck?”  
All eyes looked to Tori, who looked just as clueless as the rest of them.  
“I talked to him last night, and he seemed fine. I texted him from class but haven’t heard from him.”  
“You gotta admit though,” Andre said, almost whispering, “Something ain’t right with that boy.”  
Everyone nodded, but no one wanted to say a word. Confronting a friend with a clear problem was never easy, but he hadn’t done anything, at least that they could tell, to endanger himself or anyone.  
“Let’s just keep an eye on him. If he doesn’t show up tomorrow, we’ll have to do something for sure,” Robbie said, before hurrying off to a technical theater class.  
Everyone else scattered as well, with Andre and Tori heading to a music class, Jade left for an art class, and Cat headed to her dance class. The hallways had cleared with the exception of one very lost looking stocky blonde teen who was too busy staring at one of the most beautiful girls he’d ever seen to find his classroom, and, at least for most people at the school, the rest of the day proceeded as normal.  
_____________________________________________________________________

Tori wasted no time heading over to Beck’s trailer after dinner with her family. She had called twice, and sent at least five texts, but there was no response. She knocked for a solid minute before he finally answered the door, looking almost normal, and refreshingly showered, which was surprising for this time of night.  
“Sorry, babe. Had the music turned up. What’s up?”  
“Where were you today?”  
“Yeah… sorry. Woke up at like almost noon, and I figured I might as well just not go instead of being late.”  
“Ok… and my calls and texts?” she asked, crossing her arms.  
“I, uh, lost my phone somewhere in here. I put it on silent, so I can’t even call and find it. You want to come in?”  
The young Latina stepped up into the trailer, following her boyfriend, trying not to get upset at the way Beck had been the last few weeks. She looked around the trailer and couldn’t believe the mess. Clothes were piled all over the place, the bed clearly hadn’t been made since the last time she was over here nearly a week ago. Pizza boxes and Chinese containers littered his desk, but he had clearly tried to clean up by just spraying Febreeze all over the place.  
“So what did I miss?”  
“Honestly, not too much. I know there’s a few classes we don’t have together but you just missed introductions in Parker’s class. Sikowitz is a different story though. He basically told us to go out and find replacements for us once we’re gone next year. It was kind of an awkward task.”  
Beck looked like he had zoned out while she spoke, “That’s cool, I guess.”  
Tori just stared at him for what seemed like minutes. “You’re acting seriously messed up… maybe I should just go.”  
She barely had time to turn around when Beck’s hand shot up to grab her arm. “I’m sorry, Tori… I’m just having an off day. Please stay. I need you.”  
“Beck…” she said, trying to break free of his tight grasp, when she finally decided to stop struggling. As if her going limp was an invitation, Beck began to kiss her neck. His kisses felt really cold and empty at first to Tori, but then the smell of his hair flooded her nostrils. The scent combined with his touch, and the deep kisses that were sure to leave marks, started to send waves of pleasure through Tori’s brain.  
The girl no longer felt angry or frustrated at Beck, and found her arms wrapping around her boyfriend, fully accepting what he was doing. Her fingertips began playing with the bottom edge of his old tee shirt, and snuck inside to run along his abs. She could feel Beck smile as he kissed her, wrapping his arms around her midsection, his hands no longer forceful, and just softly exploratory.   
Tori’s hand remained at Beck’s stomach while her other hand had become entangled in the most amazing head of hair she’d ever seen, her fingers massaging his scalp as she gripped his hair tighter as his kisses became more intense. There were even a few times that Tori found herself moaning his name as he seemed to cover her whole body in his affection.  
This intensified further when Beck backed away from the girl and removed his shirt, before pulling Tori close as the two fell onto his bed. They shared several deep kisses, each laughing a bit as they made out, all four of their hands searching every possible inch of the other’s body, as if they had never done anything like this before.  
Beck always liked that about Tori. Sex with her never really got old, and, besides the obvious, she always seemed like a virgin. His hands ran along her still clothed stomach, only slightly rubbing the edge of her chest, teasing her with every passing moment. When she finally couldn’t take it anymore, she tore her shirt off, barely breaking contact to his lips as she undressed.  
Taking advantage of the newly exposed skin, Beck dove into her body, kissing her exposed collarbone and chest while his hands rubbed her stomach, gripping her sides tightly. Tori reared her head back in ecstasy, biting her lip to hold back her moans. Her thin bra straps were slowly lowered from her shoulders, being replaced by Beck’s warm mouth, kissing her tanned skin.  
Tori finished the upper undressing by reaching behind her back to unhook her blue bra, allowing it to slide down her arms, slowly and shyly, revealing her bare chest to someone who had seen it a number of times before. Beck slid his body downward until he was at eye level with the Latina’s B cup breasts. He hungrily took one of her breasts into his mouth, swathing his tongue around her eraser sized nipples, and alternating between sucking hard and soft on her sensitive skin. Once he felt her left breast was sufficiently aroused, he moved to the right one.  
No longer content to stifle her sounds, Tori was now on the verge of screaming as she moaned from his affections. Her mind had turned to blissful mush. They had been together a few times, but somehow Beck always found a fresh way to ravage her body. While his mouth was busy on her chest, his aggressive hands were wrapped around her abdomen and were squeezing her supple ass. Tori couldn’t believe how quickly he had become so animalistic, and she couldn’t believe how much she enjoyed it.   
This feeling only grew when Beck unbuttoned her jeans and quickly pulled them, and her teddy bear adorned underwear, down her legs. Continuing his carnal assault, his face dove into her newly exposed core, and he hungrily lapped up the girl’s glistening pink pussy.   
“Ohmigod, ohmigod, ohmigod… Beccccckkkk… F-f-f-fuuuuuuck… Baby… don’t stop…” She screamed, gripping his hair in her fingers, pushing his face into her core as hard as she could. “Just…. Fucking devour me!”  
Beck was happy oblige, his rough tongue hitting every angle of Tori’s extremely sensitive clit, as he reached in and slid two fingers inside her. The insertion was too much for Tori and Beck could feel her walls tighten. Knowing she was close, he went full force with his tongue, and thrusting his two fingers in and out, until she screamed at the top of her lungs, signaling her orgasm, and with a higher note than she thought she could hit, she came, and Beck, whose hair was still tightly being held, quickly lapped up her juices.  
As Beck climbed up her heavily breathing body, he lightly planted kisses on her face, trying not to block the air as she gasped.  
“That… was….wow,” she managed, eyes still wide from her experience. “If you’ll give me a sec…” she said, reaching behind her hair to try and tie it back before going down on him, “I’ll return the favor.”  
Beck grabbed her hand from tying her hair back. “It’s cool… I really like your hair down, and if I could be really bold, Tori,” he leaned in, his voice turning into a whisper in her ear, “I really, really, really want to fuck the shit out of you.”  
Tori cautiously nodded, a small grin creeping across her face, as she could already feel herself aching for him by the second ‘really.’ Tori was never the kind of person that craved sex, but once Beck got her going, she couldn’t think about anything else. Right now she needed him to fill her body up, to pierce her very being with himself.  
Standing up, Beck quickly unbuckled his pants and slid them down, tossing them into a pile, quickly followed by his boxers. He wasted no time getting back on the bed and spreading Tori’s legs out. With one swift motion, he pulled his girlfriend towards him, sheathing himself inside of her, prompting a wide eyed look, which was followed by her rolling eyes. Pulling himself out slowly, which earned a whimper from Tori’s lips, he quickly shoved himself back in, turning the whimper into an all out cry.   
Before long, he had built up a pace, and grabbed her ankles tightly, using them to hold her in place as he fucked her wildly, watching her breasts bounce with his thrusts. Every so often she would form words to shout, but mostly it was just a mess of screams, moans, squeals, and what Beck assumed to be her attempt at profanity.  
“Ooohhohhh… there… oh baby fuuuunnnnnnngggg… there… don’t… Eiiiiiaahhhh”  
Knowing that Tori wasn’t going to provide the dirty talk, he had no problem supplying his own. “You like that baby?” he asked to a slowly nodding Tori, “You like it when I fuck you so hard you can’t even talk?”  
“Uh….. yeah… babyOHHHH… yes.”  
He then pulled her even closer, somewhat bending her back as he put her legs on his shoulders and kept thrusting harder and harder, using his freed hands to grip her abdomen on each side. Tori could feel his fingers painfully digging into her sides, but she was so lost in her bliss, that she hardly noticed it. Despite being the more energetic and aggressive one tonight, Beck wasn’t slowing down at all, pumping in and out of her as hard and as fast as humanly possible.  
“You like it when I pound you pussy with my big hard cock?”  
“Yes… ohhh”  
“Say it then” he said, smacking her breast less than gently.  
“I love it when you p-p-p-pound my pussy with your b-bbig hard coo- ohhhh- cock.”  
“That’s good,” he said, slowing down his pace. “Now whose pussy is this?”  
“Yours…” she whimpered, as he spanked her breasts again.  
“Louder than that…”  
“It’s your pussy Beck!” she screamed, half from excitement, and half from actual submissiveness. He always had a way of making her feel so dirty.   
“That’s right… and tell me what you want me to do with this pussy, little Tori Vega.”  
Tori was able to catch her breath as Beck had slowed it down, allowing her to focus and say the dirtiest thing to come to her mind, hoping it would appease him. “I want- no, I need you and your rock hard cock to fuck me and my tight little pussy until I can’t see straight. I want you to fuck me so hard that I can’t even have a thought. Yeah… fuck my brains out, B-“  
Beck wasn’t sure if she was about to say baby or Beck, but he didn’t care as he returned to piston0ing the Latina’s love hole like there was no tomorrow, causing her legs to fall.  
As Tori’s legs fell from his shoulders, they wrapped around his midsection, keeping him in place as he continued pounding her with such ferocity that she wondered if she’d be able to walk after this.  
Finally, Tori’s legs tightened so hard, she thought they might cramp as her orgasm took hold. It was so electrifying that her body actually shook as if she might be having a seizure before she finally went limp and drifted into the afterglow.  
Beck felt himself very close and quickly pulled out of Tori, and pointed his engorged and overworked member towards her stomach. A couple strokes was all it took to fire four thick ropes of cum all over the Latina’s heaving stomach and breasts.   
“I’m not even mad…” she said, still trying to catch her breath. Scooping up what she could from her body, she managed to get up and wobble over to the bathroom to clean herself up. As she looked in the mirror, washing her face and body where he had shot, she noticed how red her body was. It was pretty intense, she thought, it’s only natural my body looks like ragged.  
As Beck watched Tori stumble over to the bed, she just dropped like a wet sack and within minutes had passed out. Beck reached over and grabbed a pill bottle, and swallowed a couple before taking a sip of soda he’d been drinking when she showed up, and before too long, he had nestled into sleep alongside her, both still completely naked.  
______________________________________________________________________

A few hours passed as the two slept deeply from the exhausting lovemaking, until Tori finally woke up and checked her phone for the time. Shit, she thought, it’s almost midnight, I gotta get home.  
Slowly, she slid from Beck’s arms and gathered her clothes, making her way to the bathroom to change. She debated turning on the lights, but decided it was better not to get dressed in the dark. As she looked at the newly illuminated room, something in the mirror caught her eye. Several things actually.  
There were three very deep hickeys on her neck, and there were already some signs of bruising on her abdomen where he had held her. Pressing her fingers to the finger shaped marks, she quickly felt how sore they were. She even had the makings of a bruise on her left breast, where he had struck her during the more intense portion of their sexual session. Trying not to look at herself any more, she hurried to dress, her body flailing to put her clothes back on, knocking over a pill bottle in the process.  
“Hydrocodone” the bottle read.  
Tori stared at it for a moment, trying to recall where she had seen this medicine before. She hoped there wasn’t something serious wrong with Beck that he needed this medication. Quickly putting it into her phone, she saved it for an internet search later. Right now, she needed to get home fast.   
As she crept out the door, and got into Trina’s car (which she couldn’t legally drive), Tori’s mind was racing about how great tonight was, and despite her pain, it was one of the best experiences of her newly adult life.  
____________________________________________________________

 

 

“Oh fuck, that’s nice!”  
Trina Vega was propped up on the bar inside the handicapped restroom, where her ‘secret’ boyfriend, Robbie, had his head firmly placed underneath her dress. His oral skills had certainly come a long way since they first started doing this, and after just a few minutes, Trina could feel an orgasm building. She always tried to hold in all compliments, because she felt he’d work harder if he thought she wasn’t pleased enough, but sometimes things would slip out.  
Robbie really wasn’t crazy about doing this inside a school bathroom, but he was doing something he really enjoyed, so that more than made up for it. His tongue was circling her sex, while he kept his hands firmly on her thighs. He knew Trina was trying to hold back, despite knowing that he was making her feel really good. He was fine with that. Her hands gripped on his curly black hair tightly, pushing him into her core as much as she could, sending a signal that she was about to blow.  
Soon enough, a half purring/half squealing came pouring from her mouth as her body spasmed a bit before her juices came out in a gush, which Robbie hungrily lapped up.  
“Did I do good?” he asked, already knowing the answer, as he pulled his head from her dress.  
“Yes…” she said, her mouth fighting an ear-to-ear smile, as she bit her lip, basking in her afterglow. “You did… amazing.”  
“Well, you’re welcome. I actually stayed up researching it, and I actually found a really interesting article and how to on Pearpedia. It started out-“  
“Robbie?”  
“Yeah?”  
“Shut the fuck up and get your pants off. We’ve only got like 10 minutes.”  
“Yes ma’m.”  
Trina couldn’t help but laugh a bit at that, as the geeky teen stood up and slid his khaki pants off. The older Vega got off the bar and hungrily stalked Robbie to the other side of the stall, pushing him against the tiled wall before dropping to her knees on the surprisingly clean bathroom floor. She gripped the waistband and slid his boxers down his legs. Trina wasted no time, licking the sides and underside of Robbie’s member.  
“Mmmmmm…” was all he could manage, throwing his head against the wall. He looked down at her, making eye contact with her gorgeous brown eyes, but he couldn’t stop paying attention to how her pink tongue was worshiping his cock.  
When Trina finally decided to dive her mouth down onto his member, just taking the head in at first, Robbie nearly came right then. He fought it back, closing his eyes, and trying to come up with something distracting. He settled on that time he was emasculated in the Yerbian prison. This just barely worked, feeling her hot and wet mouth take nearly his entire length into her mouth. Coming back off, she added to the pressure by running her fingers over his balls and lower shaft, before shoving him deep into her mouth again.  
Trina had mastered deep-throating Robbie at this point, and honestly enjoyed it, but she’d never let him know that. She loved the feeling and taste of him, but she really couldn’t wait for him to be inside her, which from the way he was struggling, probably needed to be soon.  
Slowly pulling her head off his member, Trina stood back up and, using the bar as support, bent over. She looked over at Robbie who was just snapping out of whatever thought he was having, and gave him her ‘bedroom’ eyes.  
“Robbie, I really need you inside me. Hurry up.”  
The awkward teen moved over towards her, reaching into his pocket for his wallet, and grabbed a foil square from inside. Quickly suiting up, he lifted her dress, and slowly slid himself inside her sheath. His slow pace was surprisingly enjoyable to Trina, but they were on a schedule.  
“Baby… we don’t have much time.”  
“Ok then.”  
With that, Robbie increased his pace, gripping her hips as he thrust in and out of her faster and faster with each passing moment. Trina could barely hold her moans anymore, and began to make the kind of noises that drove Robbie absolutely wild.  
“Oooohhhhmmm-“ Trina moaned, but cut herself short when the main bathroom door opened. Robbie very quietly slowed down to a very slow and teasing pace, and instead, in a really aggressive mood that turned the eldest Vega on more than she thought possible, pulled her up and against him and reached and covered her mouth with his hand. His fingers slipped into her mouth, the vague taste of her sex from when he fingered her when they first began. His other arm wrapped around her chest, keeping her in place, and allowing him to fondle her DD cup breasts, his fingers running over her nipples even through her dress and bra.   
The toilet flush sounded out, followed by the sink, then the door opened again, signaling that they were finally free. Robbie’s hand now drifted down from her lips to her lower lips, and began fingering his girlfriend, massaging her clit, as he pounded her pussy with all his speed and might. Trina’s eyes rolled back as she was fucked silly, unable to make a sound even without his hand in her mouth.   
It proved too much for Trina, whose core turned into a vice as she experienced her second and much more forceful orgasm of the day. Robbie followed quickly behind, coming so hard inside her, that he was actually thankful he had the condom on. The two were exhausted and separated, allowing Robbie to slide the condom off and into a trashcan.  
“Wow, that was-“  
“Shhh…” Trina said, pressing her finger to his lips. “No talking, Robbie… I want to enjoy this for a minute.”  
Robbie did as he was told, staying quiet as he slipped his pants on, while Trina was readjusting herself, before putting her own panties, which Robbie kept in his pocket, back on. Robbie leaned in to kiss her, which she begrudgingly accepted, before pulling away.  
“Eww… Robbie you have twat breath. I can’t kiss you right now.”  
“Trina, you had your mouth on me too, and it didn’t bother me.”  
“That’s because you didn’t come in my mouth, one. And two, that’s because you’re desperate for me.”  
Robbie was visibly upset. “You’re kind of a bitch now, Trina… that’s really not cool. When we started this, I really liked you, but ever since we got back to school, you’ve been-”  
“Whoa…Don’t act like you did me a favor, Shapiro. I bet there are twenty guys out there who would fuck me just as good if not better. You should be the thankful one.”  
“Whatever…” he muttered, sliding out of the stall, to wash his hands and face in the sink.   
Trina followed quickly behind and checked the hallway to see if anyone could see when Robbie exited. It was clear so she pushed him out and went about fixing herself up in front of the mirror. In the back of her mind, she felt really bad for the exchange she just had, but that was just her way of keeping Robbie in check. He’d be less likely to break up with her if he thought she was the best he could get.  
Once she felt that she was ‘hot’ enough, she exited the bathroom and went to class, her mind free from worry.  
______________________________________________________________________

As Robbie arrived to his next class, Sikowitz, he sat down next to Andre, in front of Jade, trying to maintain his anger. Andre tapped him on the shoulder and pointed over at the other side of the room. Robbie was surprised to see Tori, sitting backwards in her chair, chatting it up with this new guy in the class. Nathan something, he thought. His improv scene from last week was actually pretty good, but his southern drawl was really distracting at times. He was still harboring his crush on Tori, but, especially after Trina dressed him down, he knew he never had a chance. The fact that she was dating Beck, who was acting really strangely, didn’t help things either. Robbie, much like the rest of the class, it seemed, just sat and eavesdropped. Andre and Jade were listening just as focused-ly. While Jade was happy that Tori seemed to be flirting with someone other than Beck, Andre was a bit jealous that Tori had said more words to this guy than she had to him since school had started back.  
“So, Nathan, you’re from Texas?”  
“Yeah. Just north of Dallas. And you can call me Nate… unless a‘course you were wantin’ me to call you Victoria?”  
“Yeah, Tori’s fine with me.”  
“Good deal. So, you originally from California?”  
“Yeah… I’ve lived around LA for pretty much my whole life. But I only started at this school a couple years ago. I came in as a sophomore, I guess.”  
“Yeah,” he said leaning back in his chair, “I was mighty hesitant about starting at a school like this as a junior, but after a week, I’ll be damned if it ain’t better’an the public school I went to for years.”  
Tori heard his answer, but wasn’t really listening, completely distracted by how cute he was, and how really cute his accent was. “Yeah… that’s certainly something,” she said, hoping it would be a suitable answer for whatever he said.  
“Listen, I might be kinda forward here,” he said leaning forward, looking into Tori’s eyes, “but I don’t know many folks, and if I’m bein’ honest, you’re mighty pretty. Could we maybe grab some grub and you show me where all the cool spots in town are?”  
Tori blushed a little from the compliment, and hated turning him down but she had to do it. “Actually, Nate, I’ve got a boyfriend. His name is Beck, but I thank you for that compliment.”  
“Ah, the pretty boy? Well, it figgers. Well, you ever lose hair guy, you should give me a call,” he said, jotting down his name and number on a piece of paper before ripping it out and handing it to her.  
Tori reached to take the paper when it was snatched up by an olive skinned hand.   
“What’s this?” Beck said, looking at it. “Were you hitting on my girl, dude?”  
“Whoa… sorry pardner… meant no disrespect. Didn’t know she had a fella.”  
“What did you call me?” Beck said, getting angrier by the second.  
Nathan stood up and stared down Beck, knowing he could take the kid in a fight. “I called you fella… it’s a term of endearment. Look, I’m sorry I hit on your girl.”  
“You’re going to be sorry.” Beck said, through gritted teeth.  
Tori stood up and got in between them. “Guys… seriously. Nate said he was sorry, Beck. And Nate, it was kinda douche-y to give me your number like that.” Both guys separated, allowing Tori to step back.   
Nate huffed and turned around, and almost sat down, when he felt a tap on his shoulder. Just as he looked back at Beck, his fist slammed into the side of Nate’s strong jaw. The mere surprise caught Nate off guard and staggered back on his chair, and after losing his balance in a way that would be rife for jokes later, he fell.  
Beck stormed out of the class, followed quickly by Tori who only stayed for a moment to mouth a quick apology to the Texas native. Andre and Robbie rushed over to help the guy up- Andre, of course, did most of the heavy lifting- while Jade and Cat stood back, still in a bit of shock.  
“Alright… that kid fights dirty,” Nate said, getting back on his feet and rubbing his jaw.  
“Uh yeah…” Andre said, unsure of what to say to a guy after your best friend punches him, “Pretty sure he’s older than you, dude.”   
“Well, he acts like a 6 year old… my mistake.”  
This earned a slight chuckle from the group, except for Cat, who abhorred violence and mean people.  
“You want us to go get somebody, man?” Robbie asked.  
“Nah… I’m good. No big deal… Suppose in a way I had that comin’.”  
“So… Nate,” Jade said putting far too much emphasis on his name, “Probably not the best way to meet people… I’m Jade. That’s Andre, Robbie, and that is our actual resident 6 year old, Cat.”  
“That’s not very nice, Jade…” the petite redhead said shyly.  
“I rest my case.”  
“Well, I guess it’s good to meet you guys. Ain’t had much of a welcome wagon since I started here. Besides that little firecracker, a’course.”  
“Did you just call Tori a ‘firecracker?’”  
“Yeah… that a problem.”  
“Nope…” Robbie said, trying to figure a way to work that into a sentence next time he talked to someone.  
Nate started to say something else, when Sikowitz came in, highly focused on his coconut, and shouting something about having a vision. Class started as per usual, and about 5 minutes in, Tori and Beck returned to the class, and sat in the back together. Everyone tried not to look over at them, but one by one, they had to peer over at the clearly embarrassed girl and a very angry guy who had a bag of ice on his hand. Nate had to give a small smirk, thinking to himself that sumbitch got what he deserved.  
________________________________________________________________________

“He did what?”  
“Punched this new guy in the face, and get this, Tori sided with him.”  
On Jade’s computer screen, she could see that Freddie looked bored, but Sam was just incredulous as to Jade’s telling of events.  
“So did this new guy deserve it, or was Beck being the same dick he was when we were together?”  
Jade just shook her head. “I don’t know… maybe. But Beck has been acting really strangely for a while now. I’m not sure why Tori’s still dating him.”  
“Thinking about having him all to yourself?” Sam said, only half jokingly.  
“No… I just think he’s gone from being a smarmy jerk to the penultimate jackass. And Tori and I are… trying to be friends at least. Anything new up there?”  
“Not really,” Freddie said, “Senior year has been killing us for all the classwork. It’s after 9, and I just now finished my work for tomorrow. We barely have time for iCarly so the quality has certainly gone down. We are considering only doing it twice a month now.”  
“Work here is kinda weird. We only started a little over a week ago, but everything just feels really different. Applied to any colleges so far?”  
“Not-“  
“I wasn’t talking to you, Sam. I’m talking to Freddie, you know, someone that could actually get into a college.”  
“Bite me, gank!”  
“If I recall, I did that… and you liked it.”  
“Girls…” Freddie said, separating Sam from the computer screen. It dawned on him in moments how dumb it was to try and stop a fight with an inanimate object. “A couple places. Mom wants me to stay around. Maybe Northwestern University, or Seattle University, but I wouldn’t mind heading your way. Maybe Cal Tech or something like that.”  
“I’d certainly like that. I can’t figure out if I want to focus on my singing and acting or if I should try and do college first.”  
Sam was showing signs of clear annoyance. “I’m going to see what Carly’s up to. You two keep being boring.” She was out the door in a rush, allowing Freddie to move into the center of the frame.   
“Thank god… Thought she’d never leave us.” Jade said, smiling, and pulling her overshirt over her head. Freddie stared into his computer screen, seeing Jade look relaxed. Her hair was a bit lighter now, but there were a few pink stripes of color mixed in. Her skin looked just as soft and supple as before and the undershirt camisole she was wearing hugged her curves in all the right ways.  
Jade smiled back at her boyfriend, knowing she was making him drool. It was nice to have her looks appreciated by someone. She bit her lip playfully, sliding her fingers along her neckline to tease him.  
“Jade… I cannot tell you how much I’ve missed you. I really wish I could go to sleep next to you again.”  
“Aww… babe, me too. I miss a lot of things…” she said, hammering home the implication with a mischievous giggle. “I hate that we only get to do this a few times a week.”  
Freddie took his shirt off in a flash and was unbuckling his pants, when he stopped after seeing that Jade had disappeared from the screen. He waited for a couple minutes when Jade stepped back into the camera’s view wearing a very thin blue negligee. He could see the dark outline of her underwear, but even better, he could see her bare breasts through the fabric.  
“You look… stunning.”  
“Thanks… I was going to save this for a special occasion, but I’ve really missed you and I wanted to share this. I promise, the next time we get together, I will show you in person.”  
“I would… like that,” he said, trying to sound suave, but his lust shone through pretty easily, which Jade loved to exploit.  
“Yeah… It’s so light and thin, you could just peel it off… with your teeth.” Jade was sliding the thin straps slowly off her shoulders, the fabric dropping just short of Freddie being able to see her nipples- not that he couldn’t them already, hardened, and begging to be touched.  
Freddie resumed taking his pants off, sliding his jeans off until he was just in his boxers, his erection, no doubt from her little show, was straining hard against the cotton material. He was just about to remove those too, but something suddenly distracted her.  
“Sorry… someone’s at the door. I’ll be right back.”  
Freddie watched her throw all her clothes back on and leave the room. He started stroking a bit so he’d still be ready when she came back.  
________________________________________________________________________

The doorbell rang another time while Jade was dressing herself, as the teen hurried to the front door, annoyed that for the thousandth time, her parents were nowhere to be found. When she opened the door and saw Tori crying, and wet, presumably from a shower since it hadn’t been raining, she rushed the teen girl inside. It wasn’t until they reached Jade’s bedroom, that Tori finally spoke.  
“Thanks…” she muttered, shivering from how cold it felt in Jade’s place. She sat down on the edge of Jade’s bed and just laid back. She wasn’t trying to peek, but her eyes caught a very naked Freddie Benson on Jade’s computer screen, prompting her to sit up wide eyed.  
Jade quickly realized what happened and shut the computer screen quickly, and sent a hurried and apologetic text to Freddie.  
“I didn’t mean to interrupt…” Tori managed as she stood up and was about to leave.  
“No… stay. Something’s clearly wrong. Let’s hear it.” Jade quickly calmed herself down, trying not to think about how this ruined her alone time with Freddie.  
“Nothing’s really wrong, I guess. Beck just frustrates me,” she said, sniffling a bit.  
“Yeah… try dating him for a couple years… you get to experience Beck’s whole range of asshole-dom,” Jade said, plopping down next to Tori.  
“Beck’s a really nice guy-“  
“All evidence to the contrary.”  
“Jade… Just… Don’t,” she said, wiping her eyes against her shirt.  
“Well, we don’t have to talk about Beck… how did you get all wet?”  
Tori breathed a deep sigh, before laying back on the bed and closing her eyes. “It’s a really long story.”  
“I got nothing but time, Vega.”  
“Well, everything is all tied together, so I might as well just spit it out.”  
“Wait… before you do, do you want anything? Drink or something?”  
“No, thank… Actually, you know… I could really use something to drink.”  
Jade grinned and ran to the fridge, grabbed two glasses and a bottle of Grey Goose, and returned. “Tonight, Vega, I will be your bartender… so,” she said pouring Tori a glass, “Tell me everything.”  
“Are you sure about this?”  
“Look… my parents are always gone and they leave their entire liquor cabinet unlocked. As long as I’m not leaving the house, I can drink whatever I want. And tonight, that includes you.”  
Tori nervously threw back the drink, gritting her teeth a bit as she wasn’t completely ready for the overwhelming alcohol.  
“Well, Beck and I were hanging out in my room, and things were… well, you know. We weren’t really doing anything-“  
“Tori, I’m not your priest, you can tell me the truth.”  
“Ok, fine. We were making out, and we weren’t completely dressed, you happy?” Jade nodded with a small grin as she took a drink of her own. “Anyway, he starts talking about some stuff and compares himself to that Nate guy from class.”  
“In what way?”  
“Saying stupid stuff like ‘Bet he couldn’t do this or that’ kind of stuff. I told him to cut it out, and he thought I was defending the guy. Beck just got super pissed off and just stopped everything.”  
“Sounds like typical Beck and his stupid temper,” Jade mused while pouring Tori another drink.  
“Yeah, I guess… But he grabbed his shirt and threw it on and I stood up to try and stop him from going and calm him down. And then…”  
Jade sat patiently, not wanting to rush Tori since this was clearly something important. Finally, after another shot of alcohol, Tori had the strength to finish.  
“He just yelled at me, and when I put my hand on his shoulder, he pushed me… like hard against the wall in my room.”  
“That motherfucker…” Jade said through clenched teeth. “I saw we-“  
“Hang on…” Tori took a deep breath. “He just looked at me, and it seemed like he was sorry, but he just couldn’t find the words. He just stared for a few seconds and then bolted.”  
“Jeez, Vega… just because he looked like he was sorry doesn’t make up for the fact that he did it.”  
“I know… but I can clearly see that something is wrong and he always seems like he’s on the verge of telling me what it is, but he never can get it out.”  
“No surprise there. I guess he has been a bit worse than usual. I ran and took a shower, as if this feeling could wash off, when I got the idea to see you. I figured if anyone knew what was up, it’d be you. ”  
The two girls sat somewhat quietly, neither one exactly sure on what to say next. Finally, Tori broke the silence. “I think he’s on drugs. Like pills.”  
“That’s a big accusation… why do you say that?”  
“Well, the other night I found a bottle of Hydrocodone in his bathroom, and it belongs to someone named Louise Oliver, so maybe a family member?”  
“Louise is his favorite aunt… Like, he loves her like a second mom.”  
Tori was a bit stunned. “He has never mentioned her to me…”  
“I think the bigger problem is that he’s clearly taking Vicodin.”  
“Yeah… that’s what I was about to say… turns out that’s what that stuff is. And I think he’s got a couple other pill bottles in there too. I thought about checking them out the next time I’m over.”  
“That’s not a bad idea, Vega. If he is really hooked on painkillers, you need to get the fuck away from that guy.”  
“I just feel like he needs some help.”  
“Help from a professional, Tori… you don’t need to get involved with him until he gets cleaned up.  
Tori huffed and puffed, trying to find an argument with Jade, but in her mind, she knew that her former enemy was right. Defeated, she grabbed the bottle from Jade’s hands and took a long sip straight from the neck.  
Jade knew that this was a serious situation, but seeing Tori Vega drink was just ridiculously entertaining.  
“So… now what?”  
“What do you mean by that Vega?”  
“I don’t know… where do we go from here? That’s a good start.”  
“Well, I am going to have another drink, that’s what I’m doing,” she said taking another quick shot.  
“Is that all you’re going to do?”  
“What do you mean?”  
“Jade… I might have seen your boyfriend’s penis when I got here tonight… I know something was up that I interrupted.”   
Jade blushed a bit. “Yeah… Freddie and I don’t really get a lot of alone time, but this was way more important.”  
“I’m really sorry, Jade… if I had known-“  
“Seriously…” Jade said, narrowing her eyes, “It’s fine. I let him know that there was an emergency, and I’m happy I did. You clearly needed me… and that bottle it looks like.”  
“Haha... yeah.” Tori sat in silence, feeling her inebriation taking hold. “You still doing ok with that whole… you, him, and her thing?”  
“Honestly… not really. I find myself hating her so much and it’s all out of envy. I need the feeling of him, and I can’t do that. She gets it all… but it was my choice. I chose to be the other woman, and I guess this is just the price I pay.”  
“We’re really messed up, Jade.”  
“Haha… what?”  
“We are in love with guys that are far too focused on other stuff to feel that way about us.”  
“Whoa, Vega.” Jade said, grabbing the bottle from Tori’s hands. “Speak for yourself. Freddie and I love each other, and he tells me everything, sometimes too much. Like when he and Sam have been together... it’s like he needs to confess that to me.”  
“Wow… that is kinda freaky. Could be worse though…”  
Jade stared at her skeptically, before taking a drink, “How?”  
“Well, he could be trying to put puppet parts inside you-“  
Pwwsss!  
Jade spit her drink as Tori started giggling uncontrollably.  
“What?!” Jade said, feeling so embarrassed, but trying to fight back laughter.  
“Don’t tell anyone, but Robbie is dating my sister, and apparently a while back he tried that… didn’t go over well.” Tori barely got the last part out before laughing hard again.  
“Wow… alright… you were right. It can get worse.” In her mind, she thought, Good for Robbie, but Trina was so god-awfully annoying sometimes. Jade poured herself another drink since she last the last one.  
“Freddie looks like he’s the size of a puppet arm,” Tori muttered, before she even realized she said it.  
Jade fought back spitting her drink again, and quickly swallowed it, before she started to smirk. She considered responding, but she felt her blushing and looks at Tori would be enough to send the message.  
“Does it feel good?”  
“What?”  
“His thing… does it work for you?”  
“Tori! Seriously?! Stop. I don’t know why you are so preoccupied with my boyfriend’s parts-“  
“Just the one.”  
A glare from Jade said it all. “Fuck…Fine, Drinky, if you actually want to know all the details, fine.” Jade put the bottle on her nightstand so she could use her hands to demonstrate the dimensions. “His dick is at least 8 inches long, and he has the perfect width. It’s not even a dick. It is a cock. He fills me up perfectly… and then some. Sex with him is maybe the best thing I have ever experienced. But it’s not just about his equipment. It’s the way he holds me, the way he looks at me, the way he knows exactly what I need touched and when.”  
“Wow…” Tori said, as if that statement sobered her up. “If that’s the case, I can see why you’re upset that someone else is getting it.”  
“Yeah… I tried doing the vibrator thing, but there’s no comparison.” Jade paused as if she was reflecting on something, and then grabbed the bottle and refilled her glass. “And he does the best he can with the emotional connection when we talk, but I guess I’m just craving the human contact.”  
“I guess Beck and I have the opposite problem.” Tori sighed heavily, and reached to pour herself another glass. “Physically… well, we’re doing fine, but I don’t think I felt this emotionally distant from him when we were just friends. I know you’re probably going to want to compare what you guys did to how he is with me, but sex with him is just, like, primal. Like it’s so intense, but it’s completely empty.”  
“Actually, I never really had that problem with him. He made my, and I guess his too, first time feel really special. And I clung to that feeling for two years, despite sex with him becoming more like a chore.” Jade took time sipping and swallowing her drink. “I loved him, Tori. But like everything else, eventually love withers if it’s not cared for.”  
“That was strangely poetic, Jade” Tori giggled a bit, knowing the alcohol was now taking its toll. “Hey… I really didn’t think this ‘drinking after coming here’ thing through. Could I stay the night? If not, it’s cool, I can-“  
“Vega,” Jade said, putting her hand on Tori’s shoulder, “That was a given when I opened the door. You’re more than welcome at my place anytime.”  
Tori smiled and finished the last sip in the bottle. “Awesome… do you have a spare shirt or shorts or something I can sleep in?”  
Jade rummaged through some drawers and threw an old rock t shirt and some running shorts at her. “Those work?”  
Tori turned from Jade, and quickly undressed, a sight that Jade couldn’t help but peek at through the mirror. Tori unbuttoned her shirt and reached behind her back to remove her bra, the light blue straps sliding down her tanned arms, a sight that Jade had to admit was incredibly sexy. Tori covered her upper body with a shirt and slid her tight pants down, giving Jade an easy view of her thong. Tori quickly covered up, and still completely unaware that she was being watched, turned around, putting her hair up.  
“What is that?”  
Tori spun around, “What?”  
“That thing on your neck.” Jade reached out and touched the crane of Tori’s neck where there appeared to be a bruise.   
“Oh, that’s Beck’s handiwork. He has a tendency to… leave marks.”  
“Huh… that’s certainly a new trick for sure.” Tori crawled onto Jade’s bed and started getting under the covers. “What are you doing?”  
“Getting into bed?”  
“That’s MY bed. Why not sleep in the guest room like last-“  
“Jade,” Tori sat up, looking sad, “if you don’t want me to, that fine… I just don’t really want to be by myself. I can sleep on the floor.”  
“Haha… I wish we could have had this moment a year ago when I hated you.” Jade started undressing for bed as well. “You can sleep in the bed, but I reserve the right to hog the covers.”  
“Haha… deal.” Tori sat up in bed, looking around the room while Jade grabbed some sleeping clothes from her dresser. “How old is this shirt, Jade? I feel like there’s no possible way you could fit in this.”  
“Like 5 or 6 years old. I was really into My Chemical Romance in 8th grade, so I bought the shirt. A couple months later, it became pretty tight. Hurray for puberty.”  
Tori waited patiently as Jade now undressed, her eyes struggling to see straight, but unable to take her eyes off of Jade. As her clothes fell to the floor, Tori could clearly see that Jade was wearing some sort of really thin nightgown. She took it off slowly, and she folded it before putting it in a drawer. Jade was essentially naked before her eyes, and while she could just see her back and the vague shape of her breasts, she was just enamored. The goth teen slipped on a tshirt that was also a bit too tight up top, but long enough that she didn’t need anything covering her bottom half, and hit the lights before hitting the bed.  
Jade turned the tv on, trying to find something decent to watch, finally settling on something when she saw that AMC was showing a Walking Dead marathon.   
“Is this show scary?”  
“God, I hope so,” Jade muttered, relaxing in bed. She grinned a bit when a horde of zombies attacked. Tori seemed fine at first, but when one popped out from behind a corner, the brunette teen jump, and gripped Jade. Truth be told, Jade really didn’t hate it. This was definitely the closest anyone had been to her since she was last with Freddie, and it was really nice. Eventually, Tori laid her head on Jade’s shoulder, and Jade could feel her wince whenever something gruesome would happen, tightening her hold.  
Tori was feeling very drunk and confused. Why was Jade so hot all of a sudden? She was so soft and warm, and she smelled like lavender. Jade was going through a very similar experience. Tori’s hair had certainly been washed recently and the overwhelmingly sweet smell of pomegranate wafted through Jade’s nostrils as Tori’s brunette hair edged closer to her face.  
As the action on the tv died down a bit, Tori didn’t disengage from Jade’s body, instead, her hands were becoming more exploratory. She didn’t even realize she was doing it. Most of the time, whenever she was cuddled up to someone, they were Beck, or at least a boyfriend. But with Jade, at least tonight, it just felt natural. Like this was exactly where she needed to be. Most surprising was the was she had nuzzled into Jade’s neck and without even realizing it, she starting giving her little kisses.  
Jade knew something was wrong, and that neither of them should be doing anything like this, but this was really pleasant. She closed her eyes, and tried to imagine that this was Freddie, but she couldn’t maintain the fantasy for very long. Tori was certainly a different person than Freddie, so Jade was left with a tough decision.  
“Vega? What are you doing?”  
“To be honest, Jade, I don’t know. I’m just really comfortable right now, and you’ve been really great tonight. I’m sorry… maybe I should-“  
“Stop.” Jade put her hand on Tori’s shoulder. “I don’t hate it and it doesn’t have to stop. I just wanted to ask you what exactly this was.”  
Tori just looked lost, when her instincts took over, and she moved right back into position with Jade. The goth teen smiled and looked at her for a moment, and a kiss that was meant for Jade’s cheek landed right on her lips. Jade could feel that Tori wanted to immediately pull away, no doubt out of embarrassment, but Jade’s arms wrapped around her midsection and held her in place until Tori’s body was comfortable. Only then did their kiss end.  
“Wow… Jade… I’m-“  
“Sweet fuckin’ Christ, Vega. Just relax. I get it. We’re just getting some weird urges out of our system. No biggie.”  
Tori sighed and then attacked Jade’s face with her lips, Tori nearly climbing on top of Jade as the two former enemies made out in Jade’s bed, their hands focused in each other’s hair as their legs entwined.  
“Hang on,” Jade said, pulling from Tori for a moment.  
“I’m sorry, Jade… I took this-“  
CLICK  
“I just wanted to turn the tv off Vega, so I could focus, chill the fuck out. No more talking, ok?”  
Tori nodded and squeezed her eyes shut from embarrassment, and began to pull away from Jade, but Jade pulled her back and ran her hands up and down Tori’s sides. The girls traded very playful kisses, their hands touching many of the non erogenous zones, both feeling a bit too shy to make the move.  
Tori had now managed to climb on top of Jade, and entangled her fingers in her dark hair, while Jade’s hands were firmly kept under the shirt on Tori’s lower back. Tori considered telling her to be careful since there was still some soreness and bruising from the last time she and Beck were physical, but her lips were being invaded by a tongue.  
Adding her own tongue to the mix, Tori could feel the passion getting beyond just a ‘get it out of the system’ point and into a full blown lesbian experience. This feeling increased twofold when Jade’s hands moved to her ass, and her thigh was now rubbing heavily between Tori’s legs. Tori decided to return the favor, and before long, both girls were moaning into each others mouths as much as they were kissing.   
Jade had no idea what was taking hold in her, but she found herself trying to pull the t-shirt off of Tori as fast as she could. Tossing it aside, Jade quickly found herself running her hands all over Tori’s exposed abdomen, and when she finally felt brave enough, allowed her fingers to rub Tori’s breasts, playing with the soft skin and hardened nipple. Jade could tell that it was working as Tori’s body shook a bit, and elicited a soft moan. Jade’s shirt soon followed, tossed in the same pile, her breasts spilling out, which was a sight that Tori couldn’t really take her eyes off.  
Finally snapping out of her trance, Tori kissed down Jade’s neck and chest, and without warning, took her left breast into her mouth, her tongue swathing over Jade’s hardening peak. Once she heard Jade moaning her approval, coupled with Jade’s hand gripping the back of her head and pushing her into it, she swapped to the right one. Jade was actually quite surprised at how animalistic Tori was becoming, going so far as to bite a little. Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe she was the wild one in the relationship with Beck. Either way, Jade thought, she’s pretty fantastic at this.  
Tori felt a force pulling her up by her hair, and saw Jade’s grinning face. They shared several deep kisses, their naked top halves rubbing tightly against each other. They couldn’t keep their hands off of each other, each one trying to out-pleasure the other.  
Eventually, Jade got tired of Tori’s shorts, and quickly unbuttoned them, and Tori slipped them off, leaving the two girls in just their underwear. Now that it was uncovered, Jade’s hands migrated to Tori’s peach-like ass, squeezing it tightly as the entangled themselves whilst kissing. Jade’s nimble fingers played with Tori’s thong, sliding her hands along the waistline until her fingers were dancing along Tori’s recently shaved mound.  
The petite brunette gasped at the feeling and rushed to find a way to do the same to Jade. Tori’s fingers ran down Jade’s tight stomach and wasted no time diving into her black underwear, her fingertips grazing her moist hood.  
Both girls let out low sounds as they pressed their middle fingers to each other’s clits, the other fingers running along their outer lips. Jade finally crossed the big line when she shoved her finger inside of Tori, amazed at how tight she was, even with just a finger. She felt her pussy undulate with the touch, Tori’s low moans now becoming higher and higher pitched until they were almost squeals.  
The feeling was so intense that she climbed off of Jade and just lay next to her, Jade’s finger still deep inside her. Tori tried to remain focused and finger Jade as well, but it was getting harder with each of Jade’s hand’s thrusts. Tori’s tightness increased tenfold as her body began to quiver, her orgasm quickly building to climax. Knowing this, Jade slipped in her ring finger as well to increase the feeling and within mere seconds, Tori came hard, screaming Jade’s name as she arched her back.  
Tori was gasping for air as Jade stared at her, grinning almost evilly. Tori smiled back, trying to catch her breath, as Jade climbed on top of her, pinning down her abdomen, Jade’s wetness palpable, while she held Tori’s wrists over her head. Unable to move, she had no choice, not that she would have chosen anything else, but to allow Jade to kiss her deeply. Tori was already feeling turned on again when she finally pushed Jade off of her, the goth teen landing on her back. Tori sat up and threw off the covers, and even in the dark, Jade’s black panties could be seen against her pale skin.  
Wasting no time, Tori pulled the dark underwear off and, after sliding her head between Jade’s completely smooth legs, dove in with her tongue. Jade gripped the covers tightly, her eyes nearly rolling back into her head. It was just as extreme for Tori who felt competitive and wanted Jade to come even harder than she did. She hungrily lapped up Jade’s wetness, using her fingers to spread the lips as she dove her tongue deeper, sliding it in and out. When she felt Tori’s warm, wet, and sandpaper-y tongue slither across her extremely sensitive clit, Jade released something resembling a howl.  
“What was that? Are you-“  
Jade cut her off by forcing her face hard into her very core, which Tori didn’t fight at all. Tori combined her licking with adding a finger inside Jade. The one finger was followed by another, as Tori focused her mouth on Jade’s g-spot and let her fingers pump in and out of the goth teen.  
For Jade, the feeling was extraordinary, and she could feel an intense orgasm building insider her. Gripping Tori’s hair tight with one hand and gripping her own breast just as tight, Jade arched her back giving Tori just the access she needed to finish her friend off. Piston-ing her fingers and licking Jade’s clit were doing the job nicely, but Tori decided to pull a trick she learned from her night with Cat and Carly to finish her.  
“Oh God, Tori Vega! I’m gonna come!” Jade shouted.  
Tori chose this point to make her big move, and without warning, slid a wet finger inside Jade’s ass.  
“Holy shit!” Jade cried out as her body spasmed and she nearly squirted all over Tori’s face. Tori licked up all her juices, giving a few extra licks to Jade’s pussy before moving back to her place beside Jade.   
Now it was Jade’s turn to catch her breath, as Tori giggled playfully. The two girls kissed a few more times, Jade savoring the taste of her sex on Tori’s amazing lips.  
“That was incredible, Tori… how in the world did you do that? I don’t think I’ve ever come so hard with a girl before… maybe not even with a guy.”  
“Just my magic touch I guess,” Tori said, her fingers tracing Jade’s body.  
“You know that thing I said about you being welcome here anytime?”  
“Yeah?” Tori said, snuggling up to Jade’s body.  
“As of now, that includes my bed. In fact, I’m thinking it should be mandatory.”  
Both girls laughed for a few moments, before Tori whispered something into Jade’s ear that made her wet all over again.  
“I think you might want to also extend that invitation to your shower, West.”  
Jade’s eyes widened, and grabbing Tori’s hand, pulled the brunette into her spacious bathroom, shutting the door behind them.   
__________________________________________________________

 

 

Hearing a small vibrating sound that signaled her alarm, Tori Vega slowly opened her eyes, seeing a mess of dark black hair with a few colorful strands, which triggered her to wake up very quickly. She sat up in bed, eyes wide open and looked down at the still fast asleep, and very naked, Jade West. Tori looked down at herself, and seeing that she was also naked, her mind was suddenly flooded with the memories. The touching, the kissing, the mind altering sex, and with what felt like a blow from a sledgehammer, the hangover kicked in. She clutched her head in pain, as she felt nauseous and raced for the bathroom to throw up- the alcohol just as much at fault as the memories.  
Shit, she thought, gripping the porcelain, I just cheated on Beck. Her stomach was turning, and she felt on the verge of tears, but they weren’t coming out. She looked up from being sick to see Jade, who wasn’t looking so great herself, standing in the doorway wearing an oversized shirt. Without a word, she tossed a shirt for Tori and a clean pair of underwear for her to put on. After a couple more minutes of awkwardness, Jade finally spoke up with a surprisingly warm tone.  
“So, Vega… last night happened.”  
“Please don’t remind me Jade… we’ve got school in an hour, and I just want to get through today and not think about this.”  
“Was it that bad?” She said, half jokingly. “Guess we know who isn’t exactly ‘strictly dickly any-“  
“Jade! Stop! We cheated on our boyfriends. Ohmigod…What’s Beck going to say?”  
“Nothing. Just like Freddie’s going to say. This was an accident and neither of them need to know about it.”  
“I can’t do that to Beck.”  
“Who gives a fuck?” Jade said, becoming angrier by the second, began narrowing her eyes at Tori. “The fucking asshole hits you and you’re worried about what he’d say to you.”  
“He didn’t hit me… it was an accident.”  
“Ahhh! Oh my god!” Jade said, throwing her arms up and going back to her bedroom to start getting ready. She returned a few seconds later, slipping her usual goth clothes on. “Just so you know Vega, I did this shit with Cat a couple times while I was with Beck, and she never acted like this.”  
“So… you’re saying that because we’re girls, it doesn’t count? That’s not fair. I would be upset if Beck cheated on me with a guy.”  
“That’s because that’s gross. What we did in there was anything but. But whatever… I’m leaving in 20 minutes, Vega… let’s just get to school. If you can forget about how fucking amazing last night was, and go back to your mundane, pathetic, and submissive life, then I don’t know what the fuck to say to you.”  
Tori didn’t have the words to respond, her head spinning with guilt, embarrassment, shame, and the overwhelming hangover. Finally standing back up, Tori washed her face and brushed her teeth before heading back to Jade’s room to finish getting ready. She slipped her jeans back on, coupled with the shirt Jade had given her this morning, and after a quick makeup job, she was ready to head out the door.  
“I don’t want to talk to you, but do you need to stop by your house this morning?” Jade asked, her fury still evident.  
Tori just shook her head. She knew she might need a book or two but it wouldn’t kill her to ‘forget’ them for one day. Plus, going home now would mean running into her mom, who no doubt thought she had been home the whole night.  
“Good. Now let’s get going. I have to go to the Java Joint before school, so I can caffeinate enough to deal with the sheer monotony of that place.”  
Jade led the way to her car, and before Tori could even shut her door all the way, the goth teen was flooring the gas as she reversed from the driveway. She didn’t slow down for any lights or signs until the coffee shop was within sight.  
“If you want anything come on, but, so we’re clear, I’m not waiting for you to get some pansy-ass soy almond frappe latte bullshit.”  
“I actually don’t like coffee all that-“  
“You never cease to disappoint me Vega… what the fuck is wrong with you?” Jade jumped out of the car and headed inside, leaving Tori alone with her thoughts.  
I can’t believe last night happened, she thought for the 1000th time this morning. She honestly felt bad for the way she acted towards Jade and hurting her feelings. Maybe Jade’s right about everything. Maybe it really isn’t a big deal. I’m not really into Jade in that way, and it was just an accident. Perhaps secrecy is best. She kept repeating the same thoughts over and over.  
Tori started getting a bit curious as she looked through Jade’s car and glove compartment, bored and searching for something interesting. What she found inside Jade’s glove compartment was a small notebook completely filled with stuff. There were song lyrics, both of popular songs, songs she’d sung for shows, and more than a few original works. There were also several diary-esque entries about Freddie and her feelings for him. It was weird seeing this sweet side of Jade, and this newfound humanity did wonders to counter her tantrum this morning, The last page of the notebook was a drawing with some writing that looked almost erratic in the way it was written. Underneath this unintelligible scribbling were the words: HOW DO I WORD IT? There were a few other things, but they were deeply scratched out. Tori wanted to investigate further, but threw it back into the glove compartment as she saw Jade exit the coffee shop.  
“I assume you didn’t mess with anything while I was gone,” she said, sliding into the car and handing an inconspicuous Tori the cup as she clipped her belt. “Careful, Vega… I’d hate for all that hot coffee to spill out and burn your face off.”  
The two were silent for most of the car trip, until finally Tori couldn’t hold things in any longer.  
“I’m sorry, Jade. I shouldn’t have flipped out this morning.”  
As if this was a conversation she’d been planning for, Jade remained very calm, never once looking away from the road. “It’s whatever… you do your thing and I do mine. I guess, I’m sorry that I was unsympathetic or whatever… Let’s not make a big deal out of this.”  
Tori was happy that Jade had seemingly forgiven her, and seemed to be slipping back into her usual personality. As they parked and headed into the school, the girls separated, as Jade disappeared to her locker area and Tori to head to hers. Just as she reached her locker, she saw Nathan walk by and give her a really awkward two fingers above his eye salute before disappearing into the crowd.   
The youngest Vega grabbed the book she needed from her locker and headed towards her first class, hoping that the rest of the day would be far less eventful, and she could have a carefree ride to the weekend.  
_______________________________________________________________________

Robbie Shapiro was on his way to class, when an arm reached out from behind him and jerked him into the janitor’s closet. It didn’t take long for his attacker to reveal herself as she forced him against the wall.  
“I’ve got class in 15 minutes, Shapiro. Make them count.”  
Trina was already pressing her body against Robbie’s, her soft breasts tightly compacted against his thin chest. Their mouths went to work, tongues wildly slapping against one another as their hands rushed to re-explore each other’s bodies. Robbie’s small and nimble hands snaked underneath Trina’s blouse, running his fingers along her flat stomach until he stopped to play with the lower lining of her flimsy bra. She gasped into his mouth as his fingers touched her clothed nipple, her hands slipping into the lining of his pants. She gripped his manhood through his boxers, and threw her head back, giving him easy access to her very sensitive neck.  
She quickly undid his belt, and pushed his pants to the ground, his erection pressing through his boxers and against her exposed thigh. Robbie thanked God that she was wearing short shorts as her normal pants were nowhere as comfortable as her bare skin.  
Robbie pressed Trina against the other side of the wall, now on the verge of leaving hickeys on Trina’s neck, as she moaned and rubbed him through his boxers until he was nearly poking out.  
“Ooohhh… Robbie…” she moaned, “I need to tell you something…”  
Before he could respond, the door to the closet swung open revealing Sinjin, Berf, Cat, Andre, Sikowitz and Carl the janitor.  
“Oh my god!” Sinjin exclaimed, which garnered the attention of several people to crowd around the closet and the distressed teens inside.  
Trina’s eyes were bugged out, and before she even knew it, she responded in a way she never imagined herself. With a punch to the nose and one mighty push, she knocked Robbie to the floor, the geeky teen sliding halfway through the doorway, his pants still around his ankles and his erection exposed. Needless to say, he was too embarrassed for words.  
“I said ‘No,’ Robbie. Stay away from me, you sicko.”  
Robbie’s eyes widened, and it was clear that he was about to cry, his eyes becoming as red as his face. He tried to form words to respond, to defend himself from what she was doing, but he couldn’t find them in the confusion and he quickly became aware of his now bleeding nose.  
This event had garnered even more attention as more people crowded around the boy who was trying to get up and put his clothes on. Eventually, Lane made his way over and helped Robbie up.  
“What’s going on here?”  
“That… freak,” as the words came out, Robbie could clearly see the regret in her eyes, but it didn’t slow her down, “pushed me into the closet and started, like, sexually assaulting me.” Trina adjusted herself and took off to somewhere else, leaving all eyes on the still reeling Robbie.  
“Mr. Shapiro, I think you need to come with me.” Lane, the school’s guidance counselor, grabbed Robbie’s arm and led him away to the guidance counselor’s office. Everyone in the hallways just stared, most of the onlookers looking disgusted at him.  
_______________________________________________________________________

“Robbie, you’re a good kid. What happened?”  
The awkward teen looked completely defeated. He had not only been dumped, but was humiliated in front of everyone, and all he wanted to do was die, certainly not talk about it.  
“C’mon, Robbie, I know you have a side here. But if you don’t tell me, I’m going to have to call your parents. And Mr. and Mrs. Vega most likely.”  
“Lane…” Robbie sighed heavily as he spoke, keeping a tissue to his bloodied nose. “Trina and I were dating. I don’t know why… she’s… and I’m sorry, Lane, but she’s a… cunt.”  
The guidance counselor’s eyes went wide for a moment. “Can you explain without the language?”  
“Sorry… we’ve been dating for over a month, but we’ve kept it a secret because we’re not exactly in the same league.”  
“Don’t sell yourself so short, Robbie… so if you were dating, why did she say you attacked her?”  
“I don’t know!” he shouted, punching a pillow as hard as he could. “We were making out, and when we got caught she just flipped out.”  
“Well, her claims are pretty serious. Is there anyone who knows about you guys dating that would refute her claim?”  
Robbie sat back, rolling his eyes and thinking of who might know and could back him up. Suddenly, the obvious answer sprung to his mind. “Try Tori… I think she knows.”  
Lane walked over to his intercom, and sent out an announcement summoning Tori to his office. A few minutes passed before the younger Vega walked through the door, looking just as haggard as Robbie felt. And she was wearing some weird clothes.  
“Tori… you’re not in trouble but-“  
“I know why I’m here, Lane… I’m so sorry Robbie. I heard what happened from Cat and Andre.”  
“Well, I’m glad you’re up to speed, Tori, but I need to know if your sister was dating Robbie.”  
“Until this morning, I thought she still was. She had mentioned planning to see him today, so yeah, they were dating.”  
“Ok, that’s all I need to know. Go on back to class, Tori.”  
The youngest Vega gave Robbie a very hurt look, and mouthed ‘I’m sorry’ as she headed out the door.  
“Robbie, I’m going to need to talk to Trina now… I think you should go on to class and try and put this behind you.”  
“Yeah, Lane… that’s a good idea. Everyone thinks I’m some sort of pervert rapist… I can’t imagine how my day could go well from here.”  
“Robbie, look, I know this is bad news, but you did nothing wrong. The truth will come out, and no one will think twice about this pretty soon.”  
Robbie took a deep breath before walking out the door. As the door opened, he saw Trina sitting outside.  
“Robbie-“ her eyes were puffy and bloodshot red from crying, clearly.  
“Just stop.”  
“But I want you to know I’m sorry.”  
“And I want you to die in a fucking fire… so I guess there’s that.”  
Robbie didn’t look back as he walked down the hallway and headed to Sikowitz’s class, trying his best not to think about this morning. Everywhere he looked, though, he couldn’t help but think about her. He gathered his books from his locker and stopped just short of going to class before leaving to go outside, and hang there until the day was done.  
_____________________________________________________________________

Robbie spent the next two hours hanging around outside until everyone came out for lunch. He tried to hide, but Andre spotted him and rushed over to sit with him.  
“Yo man, what’s going on?”  
“I’d really rather not talk about it.”  
Tori came up on the other side of him. “I told the gang what happened and that Trina lied. No one is mad at you.”  
“It’s not about people being mad at me, Tori… it’s just embarrassing.”  
“I’d be more embarrassed that you even messed around with that fucking slunt,” Jade said, plopping down across from him, and getting a weird look from Tori.  
“Don’t say that word…” Cat mumbled, looking sad before sitting next to Jade.  
“Which one?”  
Cat whispered, “Slunt… I don’t like that. It sounds really bad. I don’t like the f word either.”  
“Not gonna lie,” Andre interrupted, “I kinda like slunt. Has a certain ring to it. Like combining slut and… well, that other word. It also sounds like a tool. ‘Hand me that slunt.’ ‘I need to fix this slunt. Slunt-”  
“I’m sorry, Robbie,” Cat said sheepishly.  
Beck sat down next to Tori, but he didn’t say a word. He just started eating as if nothing had happened. Jade was giving him an evil stare, but Tori was returning the intense look back. Beck looked like a dog that had been yelled at, mopey and he kept looking at Tori as if he was ashamed of something. Robbie couldn’t help but think that there was something else that was going on that nobody was talking about, but he was far too preoccupied with his own problems to worry about it.  
“I’m glad you guys are my friends and thanks for sticking up for me, but I seriously don’t want to deal with this right now.”  
The six of them ate their lunch in relative silence. The only really awkward thing was when the new guy, Nate, came near the table, and as if he suddenly changed his mind after seeing Tori, bolted to another table. Beck didn’t see him, but Tori certainly did, and she honestly looked a little hurt that he ran away. Eventually, everyone finished and disposed of their food and headed off to class, but Robbie returned to the table, still unsure if he should go back to class or not.  
Cat turned around and sat down next to Robbie, and within moments they were all alone in the food area.  
“Cat, I know what you’re going to say, but I really don’t want to talk about what happened. I know you were there, but it is just way too embarrassing.”  
“Because I saw your wiener?”  
“Cat, please don’t call it that…”  
“Robbie,” she said putting her hand on his shoulder, “It’s not like I haven’t seen it. We messed around in the woods… and with Carly that one time, remember?”  
“Yeah…” Robbie said, wondering where this was going… hoping it was going in a certain direction.  
“It’s no big deal. Trina is very mean. You’re a really nice guy.” Cat put her head on his shoulder.  
“I appreciate it, Cat.”  
“You’re really sweet, Robbie. Like that time I was sad and you sang me that song about how I was swell. You should be with someone that will make you really happy. I think I-“  
Cat never finished her sentence as Robbie pressed his lips to hers, and a second later was reeling back, his face stinging in pain from a very hard slap.  
“Ow!” he cried out.  
“Robbie! I was trying to be nice. I’m… not… ugh!” she shouted before running back inside the school.  
The awkward teen was again left all alone in the mezzanine, and, after evaluating his day so far, grabbed his bike from the rack, and headed home, making plans in his head about how he would probably never leave his house again after this day.  
_______________________________________________________________________ 

As Tori headed off to her next class, she stopped at her locker to exchange her books, when a large shadow passed over her shoulder. She knew immediately who it belonged to, but she dreaded what kind of conversation was about to take place.  
“Excuse me, Tori.”  
“Heeeyyy Nate,” she said slowly, spinning around. “What’s up?”  
“Not too much… I just… well, I figured I owed you some apology. I shouldn’t have come on to you like I did and-“  
“It’s fine,” Tori said, shutting her locker. “I’m really sorry for Beck. I don’t know what is going on with him, but he’s not normally like that.”  
“Tori, I’d be damned if I said I would have handled it much different. Maybe give a man a chance to explain himself maybe. But I was tryin’ to step in with his dance partner, so he reacted like any man would.”  
“Well, I don’t know things are handled in the OK Corral, cowboy,” Tori was smiling as she spoke, and Nate could almost feel his heart flutter, “but we don’t punch people just because we feel like it.”  
“Fair enough. Look, maybe it’s none of my business, but I couldn’t help but see that somethin’ mighty awkward was going down at your lunch table. And I-“  
“Oh, it’s no big deal. One of our friends had some big trouble today but it is fine now.”  
“Oh yeah, I heard about Ronnie-“  
“Robbie,” she quickly corrected him.  
“Sorry… Yeah, I heard about the commotion this morning… wasn’t that with your sister?”  
“Don’t remind me…”  
“But,” he said, leaning against the locker, “that’s not what I meant. Something was up with you and Beck. And the goth chick, for some reason.… From a distance, it was like a Mexican standoff, but with awkward looks.”  
“You’re right…”  
“I knew it, haha-“  
“Yeah… you were right that it’s none of your business.”  
Nate’s grin had faded into a begrudged smirk as Tori pushed past him.  
“Wait,” he said, quickly moving to the other side of her, “I understand that it’s none of my business, but I will be straight with you. I really like you, and I just don’t get why you are with him.”  
“You mean, why him instead of you? That’s pretty self absorbed.”  
“Well, yeah, I get that. But question stands. What’s his appeal?”  
“Why do I feel like I’m on trial?” she said, leaning back against the lockers, tossing her head back in exasperation. “Fine. Beck has always been a really nice, and he was always really funny, and I won’t lie- his attractiveness certainly didn’t hurt.” She looked over at Nate to see him giving a stern glance at her.  
“You know everything you just said was in past tense, right?”  
Tori looked as if she had just realized something when her train of thought was interrupted by someone joining the two of them.  
“Why are you talking to my girl again?”  
Nate turned to be face to face with Beck, whose darkened eyes were looking even more sunken. “Beck…. Dude… I was just talking- not hitting on her or anything like that. But if you want to take another shot at me, you’re welcome to try.“  
The two stared each other down for a few moments before Nate walked away, his eyes never leaving Beck in case he decided to take another cheap shot. Once they were finally alone, Beck finally spoke to Tori for the first time that day.  
“Tori…”  
“Beck, look… last night was something pretty huge, and I just need time to process, ok?”  
“Would you consider taking a walk with me? I’m sorry and I just want to talk.”  
Tori wanted to just go to her class and not look back, to get away from Beck, and deal with things on her own. But as she looked at how sad he looked, and she looked down at Jade’s clothes, her shame from her own indiscretions washing over her, she turned back around and grabbed Beck’s hand.  
“Let’s go…”  
Beck honestly looked happy for the first time in what seemed like ages, as his girlfriend took his hand, and they walked out the main hallway together. They had nearly walked 50 yards before he finally decided to speak.  
“Look, babe… I’m really sorry about everything. Not just yesterday, but the last few weeks. I haven’t been myself.”  
“Are you saying that as an excuse or are you just letting me know this?”  
“Both, actually. I know there’s no… excuse for my actions, but I am genuinely sorry, but last night was a real awakening for me… I know I crossed a line.”  
“Beck… you’ve been crossing lines all over the place. Pushing me, attacking Nate,” she said, his hand clinching tight when she said that asshole’s name, “and just being a jerk to all our friends. Plus… you have been, like, super aggressive when we’ve been together. Like, I’m bruised in a bunch of spots.”  
“Oh my god babe… I had no idea.”  
“You had to have seen them, Beck. Hickeys on my neck. Purple bruises from my sides where you’ve grabbed me.”  
“I’m really sorry…” his mind started racing, trying to find some way to make all this alright.  
“I know… I think you should stop taking those pills, Beck.” His tanned face turned pale. “Yes, I know about the drugs… I know that you’ve been taking Vicodin that wasn’t meant for you. I think you should stop.”  
Beck sighed heavily, “Lately, I’ve just needed them to deal with things. They make me feel comfortable.”  
“Beck… I am… or was… or… I don’t know… your girlfriend.” She put air quotes around girlfriend, her words sending nausea waves through Beck as his stomach churned with anxiety. “Those guys in there; they’re your friends. It’s our job to make you feel happy and comfortable… you don’t need those pills.”  
He had fallen silent as if he was re-evaluating his life in the moment, his hands becoming sweaty as he held Tori’s hand tightly, but she wasn’t letting go. Clearly, he needed some support and she was going to be there for him.  
“Ok…” he muttered. “I will lay off the pills. I’m sorry I kinda let everything mess us up. I hope you forgive me.”  
Tori didn’t even stop to think before she spoke. “Of course I do… just don’t go down this road again… at least not alone. I’m here for you.”  
“Are we-“ he asked, afraid to make eye contact.  
“I don’t know… I guess it would be unfair for me not to give you a second chance. But promise me that things will change, ok?”  
Beck nodded and the two shared a very tight embrace before separating and kissing each other very sweetly for nearly a minute. They finally pulled apart and headed back into the building and to their respective classes.  
From the staircase above, Nate stood watching the scene and hung his head in defeat before heading off to his class.  
________________________________________________________________________ 

 

 

Saturday morning came way too soon for Robbie Shapiro. After the public embarrassment he faced at school the previous day, it was no surprise that he didn’t want to wake up. And he might have gotten that wish if it weren’t for his phone vibrating very loudly.  
He threw his glasses on, and crawled from bed, his legs wobbly from lack of use, and checked the phone. It was Andre. No doubt calling to check on him. He had no interest in talking to anybody so he let it go to voicemail. A few seconds later the phone buzzed again and alerted him to Andre’s message.  
“Hey, man. I didn’t see you at school much yesterday and I was just calling to see if you’re alright. Me and that new guy, Nate, are gonna hit up Nozu and then hang out at my place. You should def come with and hang. Don’t worry about all that chizz yesterday, dude. Call me.”  
Robbie deleted the message and threw his phone on the bed, resigning himself to taking a shower while he thought Andre’s invite over. As the hot water poured over his face, he considered just shifting his head up a bit and drowning himself in the shower. After thinking over how stupid and nearly impossible the idea was, he finished his shower and got dressed.   
“You’re not really considerin’ goin’ out there, are you?”  
Ever since he was banned from the school, Rex sat in the corner of Robbie’s room, remaining motionless and lifeless, but that never meant that he was quiet.   
“I’m not in the mood for your taunting, Rex.”  
“I’m not taunting. It was an honest question. I mean, I told you from the beginning that you didn’t have a chance with that gank-“  
“Shut up!”  
“And I told you that you were going to look like a fool when it was all over, but nooo… what does Rex know? He’s just a puppet. Rex doesn’t-”  
Robbie caught a glance of himself in the mirror, and saw his mouth moving as Rex’s words came out, the sight of reality shaking his delusion for long enough that he could regain focus. Rex wasn’t real… It was just him. Robbie constantly found himself wishing he could fix whatever was wrong with him, but it seemed isolated to when the puppet was around him. He could throw Rex away but the doll was the closest thing he had to a brother, and he couldn’t bring himself to let go of his very first and closest friend.  
Robbie considered responding to Rex, but he resisted the urge and looked to his phone, which was lit up.  
-NOZU IN 20. U IN?  
Robbie thought it through, looking at Rex and realizing he needed to get out of this room before his sanity really did leave him, quickly texted Andre back.   
-Yeah. Be there in a bit.  
Robbie took a deep breath and after giving his room one last look over, he headed out the door and prayed that no one would remember what happened yesterday.  
_______________________________________________________________________

“So how about that shit yesterday?”  
Robbie threw his head back and released a hard groan. “Andre…”  
“Sorry, man, I know you don’t want to talk about it, but I felt like it needed to be said.”  
Robbie, Andre, and Nate were sitting in Andre’s room, doing little more than shooting the breeze. Andre was tuning his guitar while Robbie sat on Andre’s bed and played with his pear phone, and Nate was throwing a mini basketball into a mini hoop. To the casual observer, it seemed like the most boring Saturday afternoon ever. The guys had eaten at Nozu for lunch, but the sushi didn’t exactly fit Nate’s sensibilities so they stopped at In and Out on the way to Andre’s.  
After some awkward silence, Andre spoke up. “So, I was thinking of writing a song about our senior year and then perform it around graduation.”  
“And you’re starting now?” Robbie retorted.  
“No… but I’m trying to take note of events and important stuff that I can add to the song, and I figured-“  
“ANDRE!” came a loud voice from downstairs.  
“Yes, Grandma?!” he shouted back.  
“I JUST SAW ON TV THAT THEY ARE RECALLING TOMATOES!”  
“And?!”  
“I DON’T WANT TO DIE!”  
Robbie and Nate exchanged awkward glances, wondering if they should take this as a cue to leave.  
“Grandma! You’re not gonna die from some recalled tomatoes… you don’t even eat tomatoes!”  
“YEAH BUT TOMATOES MIGHT HAVE TOUCHED MY FOOD!”  
“Fine! I will go out and get you more food once my friends go home!”  
“OK, ANDRE!”  
Andre breathed a deep sigh, before continuing, “So like I was saying, I thought I’d get some ideas from you guys.”  
“You could write about Mr. Skinnyjeans here,” Nate said, pointing at Robbie.  
“You’re a dick. You know that, Nate?” Robbie said, sitting up.  
“Yeah, but I’m a handsome dick with a damn handsome-“  
“Guys!” Andre interrupted just in time. “While I think that might be worth a line or two, I’m not gonna do that to Robbie… well, unless I can think of a rhyme for ‘attempted rape.’”  
“Cemented grape?” Nate said with unmatched speed, until he thought about his words as the two looked at him as if he was crazy. “Lamented tape?”  
“Yeah…” Andre said, trying not to laugh, “all we need is someone to make a tape that they regret and we’ve got a song.  
“I hate you both…” Robbie said, grabbing his shoes to head out the door.  
“Wait, man. I was just kidding,” Nate said, stopping Robbie in his tracks.  
“You mocking me, I get. But Andre, it kinda hurts.”  
“Yo, Robbie. Come back. I promise, for at least the next week, I will not mention the situation again unless you ask me to.”  
“If you do,” Robbie said, turning around, “You have to wear a dress to school the next day.”  
“Deal.” Andre and Robbie shook hands, and Robbie resumed his place on Andre’s bed.  
“So… now what?”  
“No idea…” Andre said, rapidly realizing he had no talking points outside of Robbie’s mishap. “I saw you talking to Cat after we left from lunch yesterday, and then she looked upset when she came back… What was up with that?”  
“I really…” Andre and Nate eyed him, already knowing that he was going to say that he didn’t want to talk about it. “Fine… Cat was being nice to me and I took that for a move, and I went for it, and it did not work out.”  
“I reckon so,” Nate said, pulling up a chair to face Robbie and sitting in it backwards, “I gotta feelin’ somethin’ ain’t right with that girl.”  
“Yeah… that’s just Cat,” Andre said and Robbie nodded in unison. “She’s a little sensitive and flighty and is incredibly childish but she’s good people. Robbie, you should try actually talking to her next time. Maybe if you asked her out instead of just making a move, she’d be more open to it.”  
“I don’t know…”  
“I gotta agree with your boy,” Nate said, and then considered the implication. “I mean, not you as in you are his… I’m not, y’know…” Robbie and Andre stared blankly at him, until Andre shook his head smiling, relieving a lot of the stress Nate was causing himself. “Anyway, back home, there was this really fine girl, and I figured I’d try and sweep her off her feet. I went in too hot and was too much for her, and she threw a drink in my face.”  
Robbie and Andre stared at him for a few seconds before finally Robbie spoke up. “And what was the point of that story?”  
“Oh, sorry. Anyway, the next night, same joint, I made out with her sister.”  
“Yeah… ok,” Andre said, turning back towards Robbie, “I think that’s enough stories from our resident cowboy.”  
“You watch,” Nate said, leaning back in the chair, “I’m gonna snag that Tori Vega chick, even though I might have come on a little strong on that one too.”  
“Well, take it from me,” Robbie said, laying his head back on the pillow, “You don’t want to go the sister route on that one…”  
“You’re really trying to go after Tori?” Andre asked almost incredulously, “I mean, I get it, she’s a fine lookin’ woman, but after you got your clock cleaned by Beck, don’t you think you should back off?”  
“Nah… I know if it ever came down to hand-to-hand, I could beat the snot out of Canadian Jared Leto.”  
(Canadian Jared Leto? Seriously? You realize this joke isn’t funny and the reference will probably be wasted, right? –my editor)  
“Beck’s a good guy… don’t get me wrong,” Andre said, realizing that there might not be much that would change Nate’s mind, so he was changing the focus, “but that boy has been acting awful strange lately.”  
“I have to agree,” Robbie chimed in. “When Trina and I would talk and stuff, she mentioned how Beck was with Tori, and apparently he’s really possessive and controlling, almost the opposite of the way he was with Jade.”  
“Yeah, but-“ his thought was interrupted by his grandmother coming into the room.  
“ANDRE!”  
“Yes, Grandma?”  
“I JUST ATE SOME SOUP OUT OF A CAN!”  
“That’s good.”  
“AM I GOING TO DIE NOW?”  
“Grandma, you can’t- the soup was in a can so it couldn’t have touched those bad tomatoes.”  
“THE SOUP HAD TOMATO IN IT!”  
“Grandma, why did you eat the soup if you knew it had tomatoes in it?”  
I DON’T KNOW! WHO IS THAT AND WHY DOES HE LOOK LIKE THAT?!”  
“Grandma, that’s my new friend, Nate.”  
“Um…Nice to meet you ma’m,” Nate said, extending his hand.  
“I DON’T KNOW YOU!”  
With a loud scream, she turned from the bedroom and headed back down the stairs.  
“So, I guess I need to take care of whatever is going on with her… I’ll have to catch you guys later.”  
Andre led the guys out of his house, and Nate hopped in his car as Robbie boarded his bike and the two went their separate ways to enjoy a fairly uneventful evening. Nate felt a vibration in his pocket, and checked to see the message at the next red light.  
-Please don’t make me regret this, man. Tori- 555-8674  
Nate smiled and did slight fist raise as he drove back to his house.  
________________________________________________________________________

It had just gotten dark at the Vega residence when there was a knock on the door. With her parents gone and Trina locking herself away in her room, Tori felt all alone, so she actually welcomed some company. Beck had called earlier that he was going to swing by after he finished some of the homework he was behind in. In the meantime, she was happy to relax and watch tv in an oversized tshirt, pajama pants, and her glasses. So when she answered the door, she was surprised to see Jade, dressed in a half unbuttoned flannel shirt and tight jeans, standing in her doorway.  
“Ummm… hey, Jade.”  
“Wassup, Vega. Word has it that you wussed out on dropping Beck. What happened?” Jade pushed by Tori and sat down on the couch, quickly making herself at home.  
“Nothing happened. We took a walk and we talked about everything. He apologized and promised he would change and I’m going to give him the chance. I mean, everyone deserves second chances…right, Jade?” Tori sat down next to Jade, and faced her so that just their knees were touching.  
The way Tori accented her name made Jade’s skin crawl, and yet get goosebump-y as well. It was no secret that she and Tori had not been the best of friends and even when she had been a total bitch to her, Tori just smiled through it and insisted that they were friends. “Look, Tori, I get it. I’m all for second chances and I know deep down, Beck’s a good… ish guy. But he physically hurt you, and he’s been a total ass to everyone for the last month or two. Just tell me that you’ll be careful.”  
“Of course, I’ll be careful.”  
“Tori…” Jade said, tucking some hair behind her ear, and whatever she wanted to ask seemed to drift away, “Nevermind.”  
“No, what is it?”  
“It’s nothing… I’ve just a had a really shitty day. Freddie’s busy with some school project and barely says much when we talk, but Sam’s readily available to tell me how many times they had sex in the last three days. Here’s a hint: It’s 5. I’m all alone in the house thanks to some wildlife benefit or something, Cat’s busy with something that I didn’t really understand but I think her brother is involved so that’s out, the guys… well, they aren’t really around much for hanging since Beck and I split, and…”  
“And what?” Tori asked, inching closer to Jade, wondering what was wrong with her friend.  
“And I can’t help but think about the other night. I had been and, honestly, still am, craving real physical contact. I’m sure if you had experienced what I have with Freddie, you would be craving something to sate you as well.”  
“I have cravings, Jade. Beck and I do very well, and-“  
“Vega, with all due respect… because he doesn’t deserve any… as a ‘consumer’ of both guys, there’s no comparison. Beck has the sexual endurance of a piece of Fruit Stripe gum.”  
(Again with the weird 90’s esoteric references? I feel like you wrote this in 1997.)   
“Jade!”  
“Look…not gonna argue semantics… I really liked the other night and you were… incredible and, well, I just thought-“  
“You thought you could come over here and we would just lez out?!” Tori said, backing away slowly. “That’s kinda messed up, Jade. Is that why you don’t want me to date Beck? Because you don’t want to share with yet another person?”  
“That was a little harsh, Vega,” Jade said, standing up, looking hurt and still taken aback by how aggressively Tori was responding. “I came here as your friend, and… whatever else we are or were… second. But I guess it doesn’t matter to the great Tori Vega. I guess you and your sister have more in common than I thought!”  
“Now that was a low blow, Jade!” Her words glanced off Jade as the goth teen made her way to the door. Tori chased after her, trying to find the words to apologize. “Jade, look, I’m sorry,” she said, extending her arm to Jade’s shoulder to turn her around. “I liked the other night too-“  
Tori didn’t get to finish her sentence as Jade’s lips crashed into hers just as soon as she turned around. Tori pushed back for only a second before relaxing as Jade’s hands held her head in place as they shared a very intense kiss. Their last moment like this had been fueled by alcohol, but this time, something even strong was at work- aggression.  
Jade couldn’t believe how soft and inviting Tori’s lips were, the taste of some citrus or some sort of fruit lip gloss dancing across her tongue. Tori was likewise loving the cool taste of mint on Jade’s breath as the goth’s nimble fingers rubbed where her hair met her neck.  
Both Jade and Tori’s fingers drifted into the hair of the other, the two teens desperately trying to push their face further into the other one’s as their tongues flirted with crossing paths with the other.  
They stood there kissing for over a minute before Jade started a push back towards the couch, and in an instant, both girls toppled over her armrest, Jade remaining firmly on top of Tori. As they slipped completely onto the couch, Jade fell to the side, and the two began to explore the other’s body, feeling every curve, crevice, and sensitive spot that they could with their clothes on.  
Tori pulled back suddenly. “I can’t do this.”  
“Do what? This thing, which is waaaaayyyy milder than what we did two days ago?”  
“No… I mean, well, yeah. Last time, I was a little drunk, and I was mad at Beck, and-“  
“So?”  
Tori sat up straight and adjusted her hair into a ponytail, and straightened her glasses. “Now, we’re really sober and I think Beck and I are in a much better place and I don’t want to mess that up.”  
“Vega, there’s nothing to spoil any of that here.” Jade tested the waters as she sat up, her hands running up and down Tori’s arm. She decided to throw some phrases at her to see how she was really feeling. “We aren’t going to have crazy hot lesbian sex, I’m not going to scissor you, I’m not going to eat you out, and I’m not even going to fingerbang you. No clothes coming off. No awkward stuff. Just two girls spending time doing some innocent kissing. Clearly, you’re down for the kissing because it took you four full minutes before you found a problem.”  
Tori was silent, unable to make eye contact with Jade, and unable to decipher right and wrong in this situation.  
“Tori… this is just fun stuff. It’s not cheating. Beck doesn’t need to, and won’t know. Get out of the way of your own happiness for once and just let go.”  
The youngest Vega took a deep breath before laying her glasses on the coffee table and pulling her hair from its binding. In a flash, she was right back to laying next to Jade, their mouths firmly pressed together as Jade’s thigh pressed between Tori’s legs, and began to rub it, feeling the heat and moistness from underneath the thin pajama pants.  
Tori responded by running her fingers over Jade’s breasts, slowing down as each finger brushed against her right nipple, evident through both her bra and her flannel shirt.  
The girls moaned softly into each others mouths between smiles, some laughing, and some unintelligible words on both sides. Their legs entwined and traded places as the aggressor several times over the course of a few minutes, so engrossed in one another that they didn’t hear the door’s creak at all.  
Tori pulled away, stroking Jade’s face with her hand. “Maybe we should have done this in my bedroom.”  
“That would probably have been best.”  
Both girls sat up, turning white in the face, as they saw Beck in the doorway, his tanned face becoming flush with anger.  
“Beck!” Tori stood, and rushed to him, “I-“  
“Just don’t,” Beck said coldly, pushing Tori backwards. “You give me the third degree yesterday because I wasn’t doing the ‘right thing.’ You told me that we could be happy as long as we trusted each other. And not even a day later-“  
“Beck, it’s not like that.”  
“Just shut the fuck up, Tori.”  
“Do not talk to her like that!” Jade screamed, getting off the couch and into Beck’s face.  
“Don’t even start with me, you fucking cunt. I know you were the one that instigated this. You fucked around with Cat while we were supposed to be together.” Jade’s face was a bit shocked. “You think I didn’t know that was happening? That I wouldn’t notice that whenever you and Cat would spend the night, you’d taste like pussy the next morning when I kissed you?” Beck said, poking his finger into Jade’s face. “The only reason I didn’t say a word is because I thought a threesome might happen because of it. Maybe then I would actually enjoy sex with you. But no-”  
“Beck, I’m sorry-“ Tori said, rushing Beck again, trying to touch his shoulder but he shrugged her off.  
“You will be. I hope you two are happy dyke-ing it up, but don’t either of you ever speak to me again.”  
Beck turned and walked back out the door, and Tori took off after him, crying her eyes out. Jade stood in the Vega household and looked up the stairs to see Trina standing there.  
“You really don’t want me to see you, you talentless bitch,” Jade said, causing Trina to scamper off back to her room. Facing the awkwardness of waiting for Tori to come back, Jade just hopped back in her car and headed home, planning to repeat the beverage choices of Thursday night in excess.  
______________________________________________________________________

Beck had just gotten back into his car when he finally decided to speak to Tori again, despite her apologizing profusely all down the driveway and yard as they walked to his car.  
“I said to leave me alone.”  
“Beck, look, I’m not going to deny what happened with Jade and I. It happened a couple nights ago. I was upset with you and she made me feel better.”  
“So you slept with her?”  
“She looked sad.”  
Beck stared at Tori like she was crazy before punching his steering wheel. The sound of Jade’s screeching wheels, caused him to point at the road rage in process. “She looked sad, so, in your mind, she needed to have sex with you?”  
“No… we were drunk.”  
“And you talked to me about substance abuse? The very next day? Tori, you are such a fucking hypocrite.”  
“Beck, I’m sorry. I’m begging you. Please forgive me…”  
He clenched his eyes tight in the car, tapping his hand to his head, until finally, with a sweep of his hair, he opened them again.  
“Alright, look, I admit I might have had something to do with this, and for that I’m sorry but this was really not cool. You gave me a second chance when I didn’t deserve one, so I guess I should do the same.”  
“Oh, babe, thank you. I-“  
“Wait. I’m going to let this slide, but seriously, even I even catch you eyeing someone else, whether it’s a dude or a chick, we are finished. Got it?”  
“Yes, Beck… I promise… No more anything.”  
“As for Jade; I think you need to get rid of her as a friend. I know I don’t have a right to say who you can and can’t talk to, but really, you have no business having any business with her and she’s trouble. We’ve talked about how much she really hates you a few times. You should drop her before she makes you do something else you’ll really regret.”  
Tori swallowed deeply. Beck had never taken this kind of angry and forceful tone with her before, and she really didn’t want to do what he was saying, but if she wanted to keep him as her boyfriend, she needed to listen to him.  
“Ok… I’ll do it.”  
“Good deal. I was hoping to have an evening for just the two of us, but I think I’m just going to go back home and get some rest. I’ll probably talk to you tomorrow once I really sleep on this.”  
Beck rolled his window up and drove off from Tori’s house, her eyes focused on the red taillights until they were well out of sight. She slowly walked back into the house, knowing full well, that she was going right back to being alone. She sent a quick text to Jade explaining before collapsing back onto the couch, which still smelled like Jade, and Tori began to cry.  
________________________________________________________________________

Jade made the right call not to check her buzzing phone until she was back home. Jade seeing the words on the phone screen would have no doubt cost many drivers in LA dearly. Though waiting to read them didn’t make them sting any less.  
-Im sorry but I dont think we can be friends anymore. Im back with Beck and its prolly for the best if we dont hang out outside of school. Really sorry.  
After the third or fourth reread of the text, Jade’s pale skin had become a burning shade of red. One Olympic level throw later, and her phone was shattered into pieces by her bedroom wall.  
A second later, she realized how much she wanted to talk to Freddie. Grabbing her laptop, she quickly fired up her Skype and sent a message to him. After about a minute he showed up online and she saw how disheveled he looked. She knew what the look meant. Her fears were proven a few moments later as she saw a blonde in the background without any pants on. Her whole plan to talk to him about the situation with Tori flew out the window and she thought about a whole new issue.  
“Wassup?” he said, as if nothing was going on.  
“I broke my phone, so just talk to me here if you need to talk.”  
“Your Pearphone is ridiculously strong. How’d that happen?”  
“I smashed it into a wall.”  
“Yeah… that’d do it. You could just-“  
Freddie… I’m unhappy.”  
“Aww… babe, I’m sorry. I know we haven’t really been able to talk much the last couple days, but I have been super busy with-“  
“Freddie, I just saw Sam in the background and you have the ‘I just got interrupted from sex’ look. Don’t bullshit me.”  
“Sorry… Sam?” he called behind him, “Mind giving us some space?” Sam appeared for just a second as she was going out the door to his room. “Ok… look, I’m sorry about that. You not being here is killing me, babe.”  
“You are so full of shit.” He was taken aback by how upset she was. “You see how empty my room always is whenever we talk? That’s because I don’t have anyone, and even if I did, it would just remind me of how much I wish it was you.”  
“Believe me, I understand-“  
“No, you don’t. I am missing everything in your life, and she gets everything. The more I try and focus on you, the more you seem to resist me. I know it’s easy to say that this is all for the best or that this is the way it has to be, but you are the one with everything, and I have nothing. It’s blatantly obvious that you’re fine, but what am I supposed to do?”  
“I don’t know, Jade. What do you want to do?”  
“Not this. Look, I spend my nights laying awake dreaming of you and trying to make everything fine in my mind, and you spend your nights sleeping like a baby next to her. I’m getting to the end of my rope here, and I’m losing my mind, and you just sit there being so goddamn nice and sweet, like nothing’s wrong here. The worst part is that you know I’m struggling to make it everyday and you make it look so fucking easy.”  
“Do you want to break up?” he said coldly.  
“Well, I guess that’s the question. I kinda feel like I have been single for a while. There’s her and there’s me. You’ve got this whole life up there, and I just get a peek into it every so often, mostly with her leading the way. I get next to nothing from this relationship, and I feel like I’m giving up a huge portion of my life waiting for you to make a real choice.”  
“Jade, look, you chose this. You said you were fine to share with Sam, and now you’re saying you don’t? Sam never has an issue-“  
“That’s because she fucking gets to be with you. Of course she’s not complaining, and honestly, I’m less mad at her, and more mad at you for letting us go on this long and not making a choice.”  
“So, I need to make a choice. Well, why should I pick you over Sam?”  
“Are you fucking kidding me? Don’t ask me to fight for you. After the last three months, I shouldn’t have to. Make the fucking decision. Until I know for sure that you’re committed, you might as well consider me single.”  
She didn’t give Freddie a chance to respond before closing out the window and messaging Cat. She wasn’t online strangely, so feeling completely and utterly alone, Jade tucked her laptop away.  
Jade stared at the ceiling for what felt like hours, before looking at the clock. Five minutes had passed since she ‘hung up’ on Freddie.  
“If I have to be alone, I might as well go all out on the sadness,” she said to no one, before going to the kitchen. Stealing a bottle of SKYY vodka from her mother’s collection, Jade quickly opened it and chugged it, her face wincing as the alcohol burned as it went down. The pain didn’t slow her down at all, and before she even reached her bedroom, she had downed a quarter of the 60 oz bottle.  
Jade set the bottle on her nightstand, curled up in her blanket and turned on the tv. She didn’t move from this spot until nearly noon the next day.  
_______________________________________________________________________

Over an hour later, Tori was still fighting her tears while laying on the couch and watching some dumb movie. Trina finally found the nerve to leave her room again and get something to eat from the kitchen.  
“Whatcha watchin’?”  
“I don’t know… some Lifetime movie.”  
“Ech,” Trina said, plopping down in the chair. “I hate that channel. It’s supposed to be television for men, but everything deals with women being beaten or abused.”  
“I think the point is that they fight back or rise from it.”  
“Whudeva,” Trina said, her mouth full of chips, thankfully swallowing before she finished, “I normally lose interest after the first few minutes.”  
“No surprise there.”  
The sisters sat in silence as they watched a woman running through an abandoned parking garage, trying to escape her husband’s friend who was apparently a stalker and a killer.  
“I feel bad about the thing with Robbie,” Trina said, out of nowhere.  
“You should, Trina… you really hurt him, and despite the truth coming out, his reputation has taken a huge hit. It was maybe the worst thing you’ve ever done.”  
“I know… I just… I thought it would be social suicide to let people find out I was dating him. Like all my friends in the popular crowd wouldn’t talk to me anymore.”  
“Trina…” Tori said, grabbing a handful of chips, “you don’t really have any friends at the school, let alone popular friends. The only friends you remotely have are the ones you made through me, the nicest of which is Robbie. So yeah, you should be ashamed of yourself. And another thing-”   
Tori was interrupted by her phone ringing, and seeing that it was Beck, she quickly answered.  
“Hello?”  
“Hey babe. I was just calling to make sure you dropped Jade.”  
“I’m not dropping Jade, Beck… I just told her we wouldn’t be hanging out as much.”  
“That’s not what I asked you to do,” he said, a wave of annoyance possessing his voice. “I told you to leave her alone. Maybe you didn’t mean all that groveling you did.”  
“Beck, I don’t know why you’re being such a jerk. I screwed up. You screwed up too. That puts us on pretty level ground for this relationship.”  
“Yeah, Tori. You’re right,” he said sarcastically. “My bad mood and coping techniques are definitely the same as you cheating on me. With my ex, no less. I am soooo sorry you’re inconvenienced by lying in the bed you made.”  
“I don’t know what I was fighting for when I begged you for another chance.”  
“Yeah, I don’t know what I was thinking when I let you back in.”  
“You know what? Fuck you, Beck. Don’t call me. I’ll let you know when I’m ready to talk to you.”  
Beck didn’t answer verbally, but the click from his phone gave her all the answer she needed.  
“What was up with that?”  
“Trust me, Trina… I don’t want to talk about it.”  
“You need to make up with Beck really fast. He’s like the hottest guy in school and you don’t want to lose that.”  
Tori stared disgusted at her sister before going upstairs to her room to sleep, her eyes burning and becoming bloodshot again from the buildup of tears. Shutting and locking her door behind her, she called Jade, but just got a voicemail. She hung up without leaving a message and buried her head in her pillow. Her phone vibrated, and she sat up, hoping it was Jade, but it was Beck. She knew that if she ever just hit the Ignore button to someone that she was truly without a really good reason, that would be it. Because of this, Tori was really tempted to answer, but her indecision took too long and the missed call symbol came up.   
Realizing that she didn’t want to face either option, she turned her phone off, and crawled into bed, and thanks to her emotional exhaustion, fell asleep pretty quickly.  
________________________________________________________________________

“Call? Don’t call? Call? Don’t call?”  
Nate sat in his room, playing a version of “Love me/Love me not” as he folded his laundry, using socks as his counting method. He kept running through what he would say if he called.   
“Hey, Tori,” he said aloud practicing, “this is Nathan. From class. I mean, you knew that. I was just calling to say hey… No.. I mean, I was just calling to see if you had plans for next weekend. If you do, that’s cool, but you know, if you don’t, I mean you don’t have to, but I figured you might want to go see this concert next weekend. With me. Fun is playing. The band Fun… not like fun… the word. Fuck!”  
The final exclamation was due to a couple things; his whole pretend conversation sounded brain damaged, but perhaps more intimidating- his sock count had come up “Call.”  
He breathed several times, and finally decided to just go for it. He dialed the number Andre had given him. Nate thought he had time to think while the phone rang, but it immediately went to voicemail, throwing his game off completely.  
“This is Nate. I called.”  
That’s all he said in the message before his nerves got the better of him and he hung up. His mind was racing. Did I really just say that, he thought, feeling incredibly embarrassed. For a good 10 minutes afterwards, Nate banged his head rhythmically against his bedroom wall, just muttering the word “Shit.”  
_______________________________________________________________________

 

 

 

Given how insane the last three days had been, the next week went by pretty quickly and managed not to be that eventful for the friends. They all reported to school and with the exception of those with good reason not to talk to each other, like Beck & Tori, Tori & Jade, and Robbie & Trina, they had normal conversations as if nothing in the last week or the last couple months had actually happened.  
The only big change was that Nate usually sat near them in Sikowitz’s class and at lunch, and was slowly inching his way into the group. This had less to do with his interest in Tori and his burgeoning friendship with Andre and Robbie, and more to do with who his father was. Once the news that he was Jeremiah Shepherd’s son got around, he was no longer thought of as the new kid and treated more like the guy that everybody wanted to talk to. To the causal observer, it would seem like he had tons of friends, but they just wanted to meet his dad. Only Andre and Robbie acted like real friends, and try as he might, he just wasn’t having any luck with Tori; she hadn’t even mentioned the voicemail.   
Tori tried desperately to put on a happy face and not give away her feelings or any of the events from the weekend. She felt sad and really ashamed when she looked at Jade, not so much about the guilt from their ‘affair,’ but more that she had let Jade, who had really become a new best friend, down. On the other end, Tori was doing her best to ignore Beck, but couldn’t help shooting a glance his way every so often, trying to resist the feelings she had for him until she figured out whether or not he was really the guy for her. Lately, the decision to give her virginity to him over the summer was weighing on her mind heavier and heavier. He would every so often touch her shoulder, as if to apologize, but she would shrug it off and get away from him as quick as possible.  
Despite his promise to try and get clean, Beck had just cut back on taking the pills. He had tried to patch things up with Robbie and Andre, but they seemed more preoccupied with hanging with the new guy. Just looking at Nate made his fists clench, knowing that creep was really just trying to get into Tori’s pants, where only he was supposed to be. But now she wasn’t even giving him the time of day, and he was getting really tired of the way Jade stared daggers at him, no longer angry or bitter but with pure hatred. The only person who was treating him the same was Cat, and even she seemed a bit off from her normal perky self, leading him to worry if Jade was now using her again.  
Jade, much like her former beau, had spent quite a bit of time in a chemical induced stupor, drinking alone at night when she was bored and adding a bit of Irish to her coffee every morning. She could feel herself slipping a bit but she didn’t really have anyone to grab onto this time. Tori was out of the question, and that hurt Jade more than she ever imagined it could. She certainly couldn’t go to Beck and talk, and trying to have a serious moment with Andre or Robbie just seemed awkward. She considered going to Cat, but given their history and what Cat’s real feelings for her were, she decided against it. And this new guy rubbed Jade wrong from the moment he appeared, and they certainly weren’t friends, but she was ashamed to be one of the people that asked him to pass word of her talent to his dad. The worst part was that she knew that they knew that she was drinking and none of them seemed to really care enough to say anything. This emotional brick wall was pushing Jade into a deeper and deeper spiral.  
One person who certainly felt a lot better than he did before the weekend was Robbie. After the truth came out at the school over what had really happened with Trina, he was lauded with a lot of people being supportive. And, he was ashamed to say, felt good whenever people would berate Trina over what she did. At other times, though, he felt really bad for her, knowing that even Hester Prynne wasn’t treated as badly as Trina was. He still felt awkward around Cat; their kiss and the consequences of it still weighed on his mind a lot and he searched for the words to apologize and try and mend their friendship, if not evolve it into something more. It took him a whole week, but he finally worked up the nerve to ask her out on a date the next night. It was handily tied to an apology and an outpour of feelings, both about himself as well as his feelings for her. He felt a little let down at first when she sighed, but she agreed shortly after, accepting his apology with a hug and they made plans for a nice dinner.  
Friday was also the day that, just before school ended for the day, Tori finally mentioned Nate’s odd voicemail to him.  
“So… what was up with your call last weekend? I’ve been listening to it a couple times and I figured you’d tell me in person, but so far you really haven’t.”  
Nate winced a bit, fearful he was going to come off looking ridiculous, “Sorry about that. Andre gave me your number and-“  
“Let me guess… You had a whole scripted thing to say to me, and when I didn’t pick up, you freaked and said whatever came to mind?”  
“That’s mighty insightful, Tori. That’s it pretty much.”  
Tori smiled pulling her hair over her ear, “I thought so… but now I’m curious. So, had I actually answered, what would you have said?”  
Nate’s mind raced back, trying to gather his words so he could say exactly what he needed to.  
“I was just checkin’ to see if you had plans for this weekend, tomorrow night, because I have some tickets to see Fun and I thought you might want to come with me. Maybe we could have some supper beforehand-“  
“Did you really just say supper?”  
Nate rolled his eyes, “I knew this was a mistake. Never-“  
“I’d love to go.”  
“-Mind,” he stopped short, making sure she really had just agreed to an actual date with him. “Well, that is pretty kickass. I will pick you up around 6 tomorrow then.”  
“Sounds good,” Tori said, shutting her locker door and walking to her last class of the day. “One more thing?” she asked, turning to look at him, catching him in some victory dance move that she couldn’t help but laugh as his face flushed a bit of red.   
“Yeah?”  
“Is this a date?”  
______________________________________________________________________

It took a day and a half to get to his date, but for Robbie Shapiro, it felt like a year. All his pursuing of Cat for the last few years was finally culminating in an actual date and he couldn’t be more excited. He had even dressed up a little, with a fancy shirt, tie, and a sport coat, and a look in the mirror assured him that he looked pretty good, no matter what Rex was saying.  
But once he saw Cat, he felt like the ugliest guy on earth. She was wearing this tight white dress that contrasted her red hair in an amazing way, her skirt ending at mid thigh, showing off almost all of her legs. Her thin figure was hugged very tightly and while she may not be as curvy as his previous love interest, Robbie couldn’t complain at the smooth curves up top and the perfect curve of her ass. The dress was crimped and was covered in thin black vertical stripes, and the darkness of the lines matched her eyes almost perfectly. Robbie’s jaw might as well have been nailed to the floor.  
Once his composure was regained, Robbie offered his arm to Cat which she took and they got into his dad’s car since Robbie primarily rode his bike places. They were strangely silent in the car, mostly due to Robbie’s fear that if he spoke, he might not be able to stop and he’d gush too much and make her uncomfortable, but that certainly didn’t stop him from looking at her when the chance arose.  
Finally reaching the restaurant, they were quickly seated on the patio, the cool fall breeze feeling nice to the dry heat of the day.  
“So… you look really beautiful,” he managed to say without taking it in a creepy way.  
“Thanks, Robbie. You look really handsome as well. Have you ever been here before?”  
“Just once,” he said, looking over the menu, “My parents came here with me on their anniversary when they couldn’t find a sitter.”  
“Oh wow,” Cat said, looking around, “This place doesn’t look older than maybe two or three years.”  
“It’s not.”  
The two shared an awkward glance that led both of them to laugh at the awkwardness. The waiter came over and took their drink orders, giving them some time to look over the menu.  
“You’re not going to try and order for me are you?” she asked, out of the blue.  
“Of course not… that would be kinda weird.”  
“Oh…” she said, her eyes dropping, “I love it when guys do that.”  
Robbie scrambled to catch his words. “I mean, unless you want me to. I can do that. What would you like?”  
“It’s fine. We probably wouldn’t like the same foods anyway…”  
Robbie wanted to tear his hair out at how difficult this was turning out to be. Luckily, the waiter reappeared with his water and her raspberry tea, and took their orders, with Robbie having the Chicken Florentine and Cat getting a salmon dish that she said too quickly for Robbie to understand.  
“Told you we wouldn’t like the same foods,” Cat said, matter-of-factly, after the waiter walked away.  
“You didn’t know that, Cat… I could have been craving the… salmon… fish… dish thing that you got.”  
Cat giggled and sipped her tea. “I’m really glad you asked me out, Robbie.”  
“Yeah, me too… you look absolutely amazing.”  
“You said that already… but thanks,” she said, looking around them to see if anyone she knew was nearby. “Robbie, I need to ask you something.”  
“Sure,” he said, leaning forward, sipping his water, making sure she had his full attention.  
“Well, I-“  
A loud screech from the road nearby pulled them both from their focus, as a car narrowly missed hitting a pole and a couple pedestrians. Robbie thought the car looked familiar but it was night time, so he couldn’t be sure.  
“I hope those people are alright. LA is full of some maniac drivers…” Robbie said, leaning back in his chair.  
“Anyway,” Cat said, regaining Robbie’s attention, “I want to talk to you about something.”  
“Oh yeah…” he said, embarrassed that he’d already forgotten that they were having a moment.  
“Robbie, you should know that I really like you. A lot. But what I say needs to stay between us for a while, ok?”  
“Oh, come on!” Robbie said, tossing his napkin on the table. “First Trina, and now you?”  
“Robbie.”  
“No… why do people want to date me, but to keep it a secret? Am I that big of a social pariah that-“  
“Robbie!” Cat said, through gritted teeth, afraid that he was making too much of a scene.  
“Seriously… what is wrong with me that we can’t date out in the open?”  
“I’m gay,” she said softly.  
“Ohhhh….” He said, calming down, returning his napkin to his lap, and was flushed with embarrassment. “I’m really sorry.”  
“You’re sorry that I’m gay? Robbie that is-“  
“No…” he said, scrambling again, “I meant that I was sorry for the outburst. I am actually still computing what you told me.”  
“Does this change anything between us?” she asked, sounding scared, afraid of that her secret was going to ruin her friendship.  
“Well, Cat…” Robbie said, taking a deep breath, “I was kinda hoping that you and I could be more than friends by the end of the night, so it certainly changes that. But… I guess it doesn’t change anything about us being friends. I’m still very much attracted to you, but that’s kinda been the case for a while, so no… nothing’s changed I guess.”  
Cat breathed a deep sigh of relief, “That makes me really happy.”  
“I do have one question though…” he said, taking a really long sip of water, “Why me?”  
“I don’t know. You asked me out, and I figured that you should know. You know, before you got your hopes up.”  
Robbie stared at her for a solid minute, with a look that cried out ‘REALLY?!!!!’ without saying a word. “Well, if you didn’t want to get my hopes up, why would you look like that? And halfway through dinner isn’t exactly ‘right up front.’”  
“I’m sorry… I just wanted us to be kinda secluded before saying anything. I’m kinda worried about what the others would say.”  
“They aren’t going to think anything different of you, Cat. You’re the sweetest person I’ve ever met and no one in our friends is going to treat you differently because of that.”  
Cat smiled, and calmed down, relaxing in her seat again, and tried to come up with something else to say, but what she ended up doing was getting out of her seat and kissed Robbie on the cheek, leaving a slight red smudge on his face as she returned to her seat.  
“What… and I’m not complaining, but what was that for?”  
“Just…” she took a deep breath…”just for being a really good friend.”  
“Well, then…” he said, getting up from his chair.  
“No…” she said, semi-smiling, “that would be weird Robbie… Sit down.”  
Robbie looked completely devastated as he took his seat, but luckily the food arrived a few moments later, earning him a slight reprieve from his shame.  
They ate in pretty much silence, Robbie taking a moment to look at how gorgeous Cat was, and then shaking his head, knowing that any chance he thought he had was well out the window. The more he thought about this entire setup, the worse he felt, feeling completely led on, and disappointment in knowing that Cat’s sexuality was the reason why she spurned him so much.  
“Are you mad at me?” she asked sweetly.  
“No… I’m not mad at you, Cat…” he dropped his fork to his plate and put his hands together in front of his face, his two thumbs holding his head up. “I’m just really let down. I’m really crazy about you and have been forever. And you’ve kinda always been ‘that’ girl for me and in the back of your mind, you always think that eventually that person’s going to come around and you’ll get that happy ending, but that’s not going to happen with us, so its kinda like my dream bubble’s been popped.”  
Cat took all of this in, with a great amount of thought. She knew exactly the kind of feeling that he was talking about, because that’s how she felt about Jade, and realizing that she would never love her as much as she loved Jade was the driving force for her decision to come out.  
“I’m sorry… I can pay for my half of dinner. I know this isn’t the date you were wanting, so-“  
“No… I got dinner. I just wanted to tell you how I felt since we are being so honest with each other. I’ve been in love with you for years, and when I saw that you have never looked more stunning than tonight, I mean it. I wish things were different and that you and I could have been a thing.”  
Cat shed a tear out of both sadness and happiness that someone cared about her this way, but it killed her to see him suffer this much. “Robbie… what if”  
He looked up at her, through bloodshot eyes, clearly fighting back some tears of his own. “Yeah?”  
“What if… I… or you and I… what if we-“  
“Whatever you’re suggesting Cat… I don’t think I’m up for. I’m really tired and I think we are friends and that’s all we can be, and that’s what we’ll always be. And, you know, I can live with that.”  
Robbie motioned for the check, and quickly paid it, not giving Cat another look or word, until finally he just asked if she was ready.  
She nodded, her eyes welling up with tears as he led the way to the car, and opened the door for her before getting in and driving her back home in silence.  
______________________________________________________________________

Dinner had gone notably better on the other side of town where Nate and Tori sat in dimly lit steakhouse talking about unimportant and shallow things, neither wanting to put too fine a point on what this was, despite both recognizing that this was a date. The evening started out a bit awkward as Nate picked Tori up, earning a stern glance from her father, the cop, as he waited for her to come down. But once they got alone, things went really well, and even shared a couple songs on the radio as they drove to dinner.   
In Nate’s mind, he considered calling this a date and manning up to telling her that they should date, but he feared that the mention of Beck would create a cloud over her and the date, and she looked too beautiful to let that happen. He had eyed her figure a few times tonight, but still took every chance for a glance when she would move. She wasn’t wearing anything fancy by any means, just a plaid over-shirt which was opened to reveal a purple tank top and some very tight jeans, but for him, he couldn’t ask for anything better.  
Tori was, surprisingly to herself, having a really good time hanging out with Nate. She had worried that this was going to be a super awkward date, but it was actually a lot of fun, and they hadn’t even got to the Fun yet (an inner joke that made Tori giggle a little bit on the outside, earning an awkward smile from Nate). She was a bit worried when he said that he was taking her to a steakhouse, thinking it might be some half karaoke, half liquor store, with a donkey pen in the back, but it was surprisingly classy. She knew this was a date even though he never said that it was, so she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty, as if she was cheating on Beck by being here, but they weren’t really together, were they?  
The two exchanged stories of growing up and going to public school, sharing the idea that they might be the only normal people at Hollywood Arts. He also came clean that he isn’t really artistically talented, and his dad is the only reason he got into the school. Tori recounted the story of how she got into the school and then explained all the weird and fun adventures she’d shared with her friends since she got in, from the Bird Scene, to getting locked in Beck’s RV, to getting trapped in Wanko’s, and even the Yerbian prison. He was astounded when she finished, and tried to tell her all about his adventures back on the ranch, where he was a junior rodeo champion and really good at shooting things.   
“Like with a gun?”  
Nate chuckled, “Sometimes. We did a lot of archery and skeet shooting, so I’d be great if I ever stumbled onto a criminal. You know… who didn’t move, and was made of paper or some easily breakable substance. And I had my guns or bow.”  
“Haha…” she said, taking a sip of her soda. “So, bullriding, ranch work, and a crack shot… Guess that makes you a pretty tough cowboy… in the right circumstances, of course.”  
Nate was a bit dazzled by her smile, and she smiled quite a bit, laughing through much of the dinner. His words had left his mouth before he even thought them through.  
“Are you in the market for a tough cowboy, Miss Vega?”  
Her eyes dropped suddenly and she held her lips tightly together. “Nate… I don’t think I’m looking for anything like that… at least, not right now. But,” she said, looking back at him with her gorgeous brown eyes, “I wouldn’t say I would never be…”  
“Groovy,” Nate said, his mind reeling. He was afraid of the rejection he had risked, but he could certainly take a maybe. “Guess we can just see where all this takes us.”  
She smiled politely, half bothered that he was coming on a bit strong a bit too fast, but it felt nice to be appreciated, and he was really handsome. “What time’s the concert?”   
“In about an hour. I guess we should probably head out pretty soon though.” He motioned toward the waitress, and signaled for the check.  
“Look, Nate, I know what this was supposed to be, but I feel like I should pay for dinner since this wasn’t really a date for us.”  
Nate shook his head, “Not a chance. Regardless of if you fell head over heels for me or if this was a disaster, I was pickin’ up this here check. My momma raised her a gentleman.”  
“And where do you think tonight fell on that scale?” She asked, brushing her hair over her ear.  
“I’ll let you know when the night’s over, and you have the choice of kissing me goodnight or hugging me. That’s usually my system.”  
“Hmmm… Tori said, sliding out of the booth, as Nate led the way to the exit, holding the door for her as the walked to his truck. He helped her up into the cab, taking the moment to really check out her ass again, and went around to jump in his side as they headed to the concert. Tori knew he was checking her out, and for the moment he held her hand, she actually imagined that there might really be something there with this guy.  
________________________________________________________________________

A red car flew full speed into the driveway at the Vega house, the driver slamming her door shut, as she stormed inside, furious and sad all at the same time.  
“Trina?” called a voice from the street.  
The eldest Vega turned to see Beck walking down the driveway.  
“You alright? You nearly hit me on the way in!”  
“Sorry… It’s been a pretty bad night. What are you doing here?”  
Beck walked over to Trina, where it became obvious that she’d been crying quite a bit. “I came to see Tori… what happened?”  
“Just come inside… we can talk. This fall air is bad for my complexion.” Trina turned just as Beck rolled his eyes at how ridiculous Trina was sometimes. She led them into the empty house, knowing her parents were gone on their own date night.  
“So where’s Tori?”  
“Oh she’s… um,” Trina knew where her sister was, and she envied her completely, but she didn’t know if Beck should know, “… out. I think she is hanging out with Cat.” The name burned a bit as she said it, knowing that the redhead was out with her former boyfriend.  
“Oh, I thought she was out on a date with Robbie tonight?”  
“Oh… yeah, I guess she is. I don’t know where she is then. Maybe with Andre?”  
“Huh…” Beck said, wondering if Trina was hiding something. “So what’s going on with you?” Beck sat on the couch a couple feet away from Trina.  
“Oh, it’s nothing,” she said, wiping her eyes again.  
“Come on…”  
Trina took a deep breath before she finally gave up and explained. “So, you know about that thing last week where I got Robbie in trouble?”  
“Yeah… how could I forget? Everyone at the school hates you now.” Beck realized his words a moment too late. “Sorry, that was a little insensitive.”  
“No… I get it.” Trina, for all her shallowness and materialism, in this moment looked very human and vulnerable. “I can’t blame people for hating me and I did do a really bad thing. But the thing is, I kinda think that I really do like Robbie, and I don’t care anymore what people think.”  
“So, let me guess- now you want him to take you back?”  
“Well, yeah… but tonight, I was driving though town, and I saw him having dinner with Cat, and they were laughing, and she looked ridiculously slutty, and he was just fawning over here and-“  
“Trina, relax. They were just having dinner, not fucking… well, fucking.”  
Trina smiled a bit at his words, but she knew the tears were welling up in her again. “It’s only a matter of time though, right? I can’t compete with Cat on looks… she’s insanely hot, and I’m just the Vega sister that nobody wants.”  
Oh, come on, Trina… you’re not ugly or anything. You are very attractive,” he said, sliding over next to Trina and putting his hand on her shoulder.   
“Yeah,” she said through sniffles, “this coming from the guy who routinely has pretty girls falling all over him, my much prettier sister included.”  
“That’s why I’m a good judge, Trina. You need to relax. I don’t think anything is going to happen with Cat and Robbie, and if you apologize, you might get him to take you back.”  
She started to respond, but he shushed her.  
“Look, I know what I’m talking about. I screwed up pretty bad with Tori, and it made her screw up, and then I screwed up again… I get the idea of doing something dumb and trying to make up for it.”  
“Tori never tells me anything… what happened with you guys?”  
Beck sighed heavily, sinking into the couch, “I just did some regrettable shit, and it led her right to Jade, and they got together, and then when I found out, I flipped out and didn’t even consider that it might be my fault that caused it all.”  
“So, just tell her you’re sorry. You know that Tori is super forgiving.”  
“Yeah… but I do kinda wonder if she’s better off. Like, maybe I need to clean up my act and get my shit together before I try and have anything with your sister again.”  
“I’m sorry.”  
“No reason for you to be sorry. Just me and her. But I think things are genuinely over for us.”  
Trina stood up from the couch and went to the fridge. “You want anything?”  
“I’m fine…”  
“Fine by me… I’m grabbing my parent’s wine. Not like they don’t have a shit ton of this stuff.” Trina, swifter than Beck even knew she could move, pulled the cork out with her teeth and turned the bottle toward her lips, drinking quite a bit before setting the bottle on the counter. “You really think I’m prettier than Cat?”  
“I, uh, never said that,” he chuckled, “But-“  
“JUST FUCKING SAY IT.”  
Beck was stunned by her transformation. “You’re prettier than Cat.”  
“Good,” she said before sipping the wine some more. “I really miss Robbie, y’know. I feel ridiculously horny right now, and I could just call him, and he’d rush over and take care of it, and then we’d have these really great conversations, and then I’d send him away. But that’s all over…”  
Trina plopped down next to Beck again, as he pulled away a bit.  
“Maybe I should go…”  
“No… please… stay,” she said, offering the bottle to him, and with a shrug, he gave in to his weakness and downed a big sip of the wine. “Good, right?”  
“Yeah… it’s definitely got a sour kick to it, for sure.”  
“S’how you know it’s good,” she said, her body sliding closer and closer to Beck as they passed the bottle back and forth.  
“Trina…” he muttered before she moved into his lap.  
“Shhh… we’re both single and in need of some action. This isn’t anything… I know I’m not what you want in a girlfriend, but I’m really good at… you know… sex.”  
Beck nervously gulped some air, and whether it was the wine or her flawless logic, he decided to go for it, leaning in to kiss Trina, before she pulled away.  
“No kissing… no talking…” Trina said, barely slurring as she unbuttoned her blouse, revealing her impressive chest. “Just tell me I’m pretty.”  
______________________________________________________________________________

“You know she was talking about fucking you, right?”  
“No, she wasn’t Rex… she’s not into guys.”  
It was a standard Saturday night now in the Shapiro house. Robbie and Rex were getting into it instead of going and hanging out with other people.  
“Man… she was asking if you wanted to have sex with her, you know, to make up for letting your date down.”  
“Cat’s not like that!” he shouted at the puppet.  
“Then what was she saying, Mr. Reads-Women’s-Minds?”  
“I don’t know… Not that. I think she was just talking about us dating.”  
“You’re an idiot, Robbie. Even if that was the truth you should have at least held out for a handjob.”  
“Rex!”  
“Just sayin’…”  
Robbie was still fully dressed, and lay face up on his bed, staring up at his ceiling at the little plastic stars that had been there since he was a kid. He was too upset to sleep, but felt too weak to do much of anything else, resisting Rex’s bullying included.  
“You know what you should be doing?”  
“What, Rex?”  
“Pounding that girl’s tight little redhead pussy.”  
“You’re awful,” he said, grabbing a pillow to put over his ears, though he knew that wouldn’t work.  
“I’m serious, man. Chick is a dyke, so you might be the first to go spelunking in her lady cave, and even if she ain’t a virgin, you know that shit has to be so tight, even your tiny pecker would have trouble in there-”  
Robbie flew from the bed, grabbing Rex by the neck, and in one swift motion, smashed the puppet’s face into his dresser corner , over and over and over and over until its head was completely concave. Robbie threw the doll against the wall onto a coat hanger, piercing between his eyes, and exiting the back of his plastic head.  
Robbie stopped and stared into the mirror, his face flushed with anger, before he tossed Rex into the trashcan, the room finally silent. He breathed a sigh of relief, calming himself, and undressed and prepared for bed, his mind at peace for what felt like the first time in forever.   
“I can’t believe Rex’s bullying is over,” he said taking his glasses off and closing his eyes, and drifting off to sleep.  
“Not even close,” said Rex, muffled by trash, as Robbie sat up in a cold sweat.  
________________________________________________________________________

These seats are incredible, Tori kept thinking, as she stared up at the handsome alternative band that played just several feet away from her. She was loving the music, which worked because it was so loud, she couldn’t even have a conversation with Nate, but that didn’t stop each of them looking over at the other. Her eyes telling him that she was having a really great time, and his eyes told her how lovestruck he was and how much he wanted her to enjoy herself. They touched hands a few times, including a long standing handholding with the whole crowd during a particularly rousing version of Some Nights. Tori also held the hand of a middle aged woman and Nate held the hand of a teenage girl, which was awkward enough that he looked around for cops, worried he would be seen as a sexual predator. Overall, they were having an incredible time, and as they smiled back and forth at one another, Tori wondered if there was anyway this night could be ruined.  
______________________________________________________________________

On the other side of town, Beck was struggling with Trina’s pants, the zipper stuck just short of where it needed to be. Trina was still wearing her bra, and Beck was shirtless, giving her a great view of his gorgeous abs. The two had managed to get up to Trina’s bedroom before losing anymore clothes, but once Trina was on her bed, Beck ripped the zipper apart, breaking it no doubt, but freeing her from the pants.  
“If I had known this was going to happen I would have shaved,” she said, semi-nervously.  
“And if I knew I was going to do this, I wouldn’t have,” he joked, quoting some movie he couldn’t remember. He slid her pants down, and saw that while her legs weren’t smooth, they certainly weren’t prickly or hairy.  
With her pink panties now exposed, Beck slipped his pants off in an instant revealing his boxers with a semi-hard on already in place as he dove on top of her, wasting no time unhooking her bra, allowing her large breasts to spill out. He was becoming more animalistic by the second, gripping her sides and nibbling as he sucked on her pert nipples, while his hand fondled the other one. His hand and mouth swapped positions as Trina’s head rolled back in ecstasy.  
It had been forever since Beck had a chance to experience large breasts, and he realized him missed them. A lot. His oral assault on her chest continued for several minutes before Trina gripped his hair, pulling him up to face her. Trina had been clear that she didn’t want any kissing, but she rethought that policy as his mouth gravitated to her neck, sucking on her collarbone, leaving a small hickey as his hands continued exploring her torso. Her hands gravitated towards his abdomen as well, her hands brushing his erection.  
Eventually, the curiosity proved too much for Trina and she flipped them, sliding her body down his, her breasts pressed tightly against his skin, until she reached between his legs. Kneeling at the foot of her bed and pulling his body so he was on the edge, she pulled the boxers off, freeing his member. Trina stroked it a couple times, and realized it was pretty close to the size of Robbie’s which was fantastic for her.  
Taking a deep breath, she began licking the head like a piece of candy, running her tongue up and down his shaft before finally, after looking up at him with a look in her eye, dove her face down on his rod. She took him as far into her mouth as she could, his head being massaged by the squeeze of her throat, and she held him there for a few seconds before pulling off completely with a loud pop sound.  
She stroked him more, using her excess spit as a lubricant, before going back down on him, no longer trying to deep throat him, but settling on just sucking and bobbing her head up and down as much she could. His hands drifted into her hair, pressing her face towards his core, loving this blowjob. He couldn’t help but think that she was even better than Tori at this, and that became abundantly true when his groans started getting louder, and he became much more forceful. As she was forced to push him deep into her mouth again, she felt him pulsate and with an unrivaled grown, he shot a full load in her mouth, and she tried to swallow it as best she could, but some dribbled from her lips as his engorged member left her lips.  
“A little warning would have been nice.”  
“Sorry… you’re… really good at that.” Beck said, catching his breath, knowing just complimenting Trina would be enough to distract her from being mad.   
She slid from her knees and lay next to him. “Your turn,” she said matter of factly, and she got comfortable.  
Beck followed orders and slid down her body and slid her pink panties off, revealing her core. He started by taking a couple fingers and tracing her area, playing her lips a bit before he reached her clit and rubbed it tightly, sending waves of pleasure to Trina causing her to moan loudly.  
Now that he knew her general layout, he dove his tongue inside her core, his spongy instrument trying to reach all the nooks and crannies that he could, searching for her g-spot. Her taste wasn’t unpleasant, but Tori’s pussy was a thousand times sweeter and more enjoyable. As her hands drifted back into his hair, he knew he was doing a good job, the sounds she was making were causing his loins to stir once again.  
Beck began eating the oldest Vega out hungrily, causing higher and higher pitched screams to arise from Trina’s shaking mouth. She knew her orgasm was quickly on its way and by the way her body was shaking, it was going to be a powerful one.  
Beck’s mouth took a break and his fingers took over, sliding his middle and ring fingers inside her over and over, while using his thumb to continue the massage of her clit. Using his index finger he pulled the hood back enough and let his tongue dance on her exposed zone.  
This was all it took for Trina as she came with an incredible force, gripping Beck’s hair tighter than ever as she rode out the feeling, her juices spilling all over the sheets. Trina gasped for air, trying desperately to regain her composure. Beck moved beside her, panting as well, until she put her hands on his shoulders and climbed on top of him, sliding her ass backwards until he was lined up with her core. One swift thrust downward by her and upward by Beck, and he was completely inside her, sending her eyes to roll back in pure enjoyment. Just like Robbie, Beck seemed to be a really good fit for inside her. Once she was accustomed to him enough, she began to ride him, sliding her body up and down on his pole.  
Beck looked up as her breasts shook with the force of their fucking, so he held them in place, running his thumbs over her nipples as he tried to hold them in place as she bounced up and down. He was really in the zone and focused on meeting her moves with his thrusts when she took her hands and pulled her on hair as she rode, and Beck slowed down.  
For just a second, as Trina was doing a move like her sister, Beck couldn’t help but imagine she was Tori. God, he thought, I miss her. It was the last thought to go through his mind for a while.  
_____________________________________________________________________

“That. Was. Awesome!”  
Tori, ears still recovering from the concert, was shouting out the lowered window’s in Nate’s truck, having no idea how loud she was. Nate was suffering from the same issues, but he was overwhelmed with the ‘spirit’ quite like Tori was.  
“So, I take it you had a good time?!”  
“What?!”  
“Did. You. Have. A. Good. Time?!”  
“Yes! It was really awesome.”  
“Good.”  
Her hearing may have been stunted a bit, but it felt like all her other senses were on fire. She saw things so clearly, and the wind on her face and hair felt amazing. Even the smells had become stronger, which, this being LA, was a bit of a drawback. She found herself leaning over to smell Nate whenever she needed to breathe before returning her head to the window.  
Nate was doing a congratulatory dance in his head, believing that it was all but guaranteed that Tori would go out with him, and at the very least he’d get a kiss. Ten minutes later, they had reached the Vega residence, and Nate quickly hopped out and took to the other side to let her out, helping her out of the tall truck.  
“Next time we do this, I think I’ll drive,” she said, as he walked her to the front door.  
“So, you’re saying there will be a next time?”  
Tori turned, giving him a weird look, as if to ask if she really just said that, but then grinned with a long “Mayyyybe.”  
And then the moment arrived. They were at her front door, the dim light hanging overhead, and his anticipation kicked in.  
“So… here we are,” she said, still sorting out how to end this date.  
“Yup.”  
“What did you say the scale was here, kissing you goodnight or a hug, right?”  
“Well, I-“  
Tori took a step towards him, wrapping her arms around him, which he responded with a hug of his own, release a small sigh as he knew what this meant. He was going to say something but she pulled back slightly and kissed his cheek before quickly disengaging.   
“Looks you got both. What does that translate to?”  
Nate touched his cheek softly. “Like most things with you, girl, I don’t have the damnedest clue.”  
“Well I had a great time tonight, and I don’t know if I could have had had more fun with anyone else. We should do this again,” she said, unlocking her door.  
“As… friends?”  
“You tell me,” she taunted, smiling one more dazzling smile and shut the door behind her. Through the wooden door she heard a “Yes!” before his truck started up and he was gone. That guy was way too cute for his own good, she thought.  
Tori made her way to the fridge, to grab a water, when she saw clothes on the couch, with an almost empty bottle of wine. It was her sister’s shirt. Trina was definitely home, she thought, I can hear her. She grabbed the shirt and headed up the stairs to yell at her sister for being a slob and leaving her laundry laying around. As Tori turned the corner to her sister’s bedroom, she saw her door was wide open, so she walked right in and regretted it the moment she did it.  
“Trina!” she said before she even realized the words. The sight of her sister’s naked back and ass riding some guy would forever be burned in her brain.  
“Ohmigod, Tori!” Trina screamed, scrambling to cover herself up, while whoever she was having sex with tried to hide with clothes as well. The problem was, the shirt that Trina covered herself with wasn’t her shirt.  
It was Beck’s.  
The reality of the situation hit Tori like a freight train, and she felt so sick, she thought she was going to vomit her dinner. She saw how completely scared and shocked her sister was, and the shame was practically making Beck glow.  
“Trina… Beck… What… I mean…”  
“It’s not what-“  
“I swear to God, Beck, if you say ‘it’s not what it looks like, I’m going to break your nose.”  
It was obvious that Tori was on the warpath, and truth be told, she had every right to be. She hadn’t completely broken up with Beck, and this was beyond just cheating… Trina was her sister.  
“Trina… what’s going on?”  
“Don’t be mad, Tori… please. It was an accident. We were hanging out, and we were sad because we were feeling rejected, and one thing just kinda led to another.”  
“Seriously?! Did you need to wipe some tears away with his dick or something?”  
“Whoa, Tori…” Beck said, dressing himself, “is this really any worse than what you did? At least I don’t have feelings for Trina.”  
“Its true,” her sister chimed in.  
“Shut up, Trina… I can’t believe you told him.” Trina gave her sister a look and began shaking her head. “Beck, if I go out with a friend of mine, then that is my own business. Nate is a really nice guy and at least he-“  
“Nate?! You were out with Nate? That imbred hick shitbag? I can’t believe it…”  
“I was trying to tell you that I didn’t tell him…” Trina said, slowly incher her way out of the room.  
“Nothing happened. We had dinner and saw a concert. It was just as friends.”  
“Yeah, I bet…” he muttered, grabbing the rest of his clothes. “So you’re taking the moral highground with me despite you going on a ‘platonic’ date with the biggest fucking jackass I’ve ever met, and having crazy lesbian sex with my exgirlfriend? That seems really fair.”  
“Yeah, Beck. You were on drugs, you hurt me, you were an asshole, and then you screwed my sister.”  
“She started it.”  
“Then you should have finished it there. And now, we’re done.”  
“Tori-“ he said, sounding just as sad as angry.  
“Don’t… just go. We are officially done. We’ll get Andre to get each other’s stuff.”  
“Tori, I can just get it now. While-“  
“No!” she shouted. “You’re going to get out now before I strangle you. I don’t want you to ever set foot in my house again. I don’t want to speak to you again.”  
Beck started to speak, but he remained silent and walked down the stairs and out the door, which Tori slammed behind him.  
“I’m so sorry, Tori. I didn’t-“  
A swift slap to her sister’s face didn’t do anything to alleviate the anger she was feeling. “I can’t even deal with you right now, Trina… I can’t kick you out, but don’t expect us to be ‘sisters’ for a while. I need to go.”  
Tori grabbed Trina’s keys and a jacket as well as a plastic bag and headed out the door, not looking back even once.  
_____________________________________________________________________

Jade stared at her computer, waiting to see if Freddie was going to be online tonight. Part of her was really proud of herself for the way she stood up to the Seattle teen and defended her right to be happy. But there was a nagging feeling that she’d made a mistake. That he was now going to easily pick Sam over her. She took a couple sips of tonight’s drink of choice, some sort of mojito, and scrolled her Slapbook for things to comment on.  
Realizing that there really was nothing that was going to interest her on this Saturday night, and she was about to put her laptop away for the night when there was a loud ping sound. She quickly checked and sure enough, Freddie was online. Her mind raced with what to say to him. Should she recant her rant from before? Should she stand by it and force a decision. Her anxiety, coupled with the alcohol caused the room to start to spin a bit, and just as she decided on her course of action, the doorbell rang.  
Jade quickly threw on some presentable clothes and rushed to the door, revealing Tori Vega, in all her sadness glory. This was so much like the other night, it felt eerie. Without a word, Jade pulled her inside and led her to the goth teen’s bedroom. She sat Tori on the bed, and then, shut the bedroom door behind them.  
From that point the only words that could be heard through the door was a very muffled Tori Vega saying, “I need this.”  
_______________________________________________________________________

 

 

 

 

Surprisingly, Jade West and Tori Vega didn’t have sex that night, but they did manage to do everything but. As Jade shut the door, Tori crawled onto the bed and planted her face in the pillow, saying how much she needed this. Hitting the lights and turning on a small lamp, Jade undressed to her giant old t shirt and boy shorts and crawled next to Tori. Jade held Tori as the brokenhearted Latina teen sobbed in her arms. No words were exchanged for several minutes, Tori’s head remaining planted firmly on Jade’s supple chest.   
Jade didn’t know what was going on with Tori, but the feel of her warm body once again tightly against hers in her bed and she felt a fire in her reawaken. She moved Tori’s head upwards, and as soon as they made eye contact, they shared a few simple kisses, each getting a bit deeper and they got closer and closer to each other. Jade loved the taste of Tori’s lips but the salty tears that were on Tori’s face threw a whole new flavor into the mix.  
Tori nestled her face deep into Jade’s neck, lightly kissing while Jade’s hands held Tori firmly in place, touching her with reassurance and concern just as much as lust. Pulling away for only a moment and standing, Tori’s shirt was over her head and her skinny jeans were slid off her body in the dark quickly. As Tori, clad only in a black lace bra and panties, climbed back into bed, Jade couldn’t help but marvel at her body in the dim lamplight, her curves silhouetted in ways, that if she were an artist, Jade could have made sculptures based solely on this moment.  
The two girls entangled their bodies for several more minutes, Tori manically going back and forth from being sad and completely low all the way to full fledged animalistic sex beast. Finally, to Jade’s dismay, Tori settled on crying into Jade’s shoulder blade, and before long, Tori drifted off in absolute exhaustion.  
Jade huffed in annoyance, as she had gotten pretty hot and bothered with no payoff. She was genuinely concerned with what was wrong with Tori, but right now she really needed a release. Grabbing her laptop back up, she checked to see if Freddie was still online, and seeing that he was, initiated a chat, trying to type as quietly as possible.  
-Hey.  
-Come to yell at me some more, Jade?  
-Actually, no. But I stand by every word I said.  
-I know it’s unfair to put you in this position. And that’s why I’ve talked to Sam and I think we might be better as friends for a while. I have kinda been acting spoiled and I think I need to sort me out before I do anymore dating. So, I’m just going to be friends with Sam. And I’d like for us to be friends.  
-She dumped you, didn’t she?  
-Ummm… yeah. But that’s beside the point.  
-So, after all we’ve been through and all I’ve said, you just want to be friends? But, let me guess, friends with benefits with her?  
-Nope… just friends. Half the reason we are in the awkward mess we are in is because I wanted to have both of you rather than making a decision. Maybe I’ll figure it out one of these days.  
-I guess that’ll be a pretty interesting day, won’t it, Freddie? I suppose I should be happy that you didn’t just come right back to me when it happened. But truth be told, I do miss hanging out with you.  
-Yeah… so, sorry, you wanted to talk?  
-Oh yeah… that pretty much answers what I was going to talk to you about I guess. I know we talked about trying to hang out over Christmas break… I know Cat would probably want to see Carly. And… I guess if we’re just being friends, I’d like to see you. Even Sam could come… I’m sure I could get her in the basement somewhere… My parents are insisting on going on some cruise for the holidays and I have zero interest in going to some hot island when I could be enjoying the cold here.  
-So, you’re saying your house would be empty and we could stay there?  
-Don’t get any ideas, horndog…  
-I’m not. Think it would be ok if Spencer and Gibby came with? I know they’ll probably come with.  
-Freddie, I live in an old empty mansion. Yeah, I’ve got the space.  
There was a really long pause where Jade typed variations on the phrase “I miss you,” but deleted it over and over, doing her best to resist the urge to want him. She had nearly committed to saying something about her feelings when he messaged her.  
-I’m sorry  
Jade was taken aback by his words, wondering if she was wrong and if she should just throw herself at him again. She shook the feeling off and wrote back.  
-For what?  
-I gave a lot of thought to what you said the other night, and you were one hundred percent right. I love Sam and she’s who I’ve always really thought of as the one. But this summer, that changed to you, and then there were two of “the one,” which was confusing. And then all of a sudden you were a thousand miles away and as the saying goes, absence makes the heart grow fungus. Our long distance relationship just kinda turned into a situation where every night I was waxing poetic as you waxed your legs… and I don’t know. Everything just seemed wrong with you and Sam all at once. I swear, if I could combine you into one, I’d be set for life, but I can’t so I’ve got to be alone until I can sort it all out.  
-Freddie…Can I be honest without you making a big deal?  
-One way to find out.  
-Ugh... I hate you. Fine. Freddie, I love you and I miss you, and to be honest, if I could, I would be with you right now. And I hate that feeling. That’s the worst part. I easily slip from wanting to ravage you to wanting to set you on fire on a daily basis.  
-….  
-On. Fire. But I just want you to know that when you’re ready to make that decision I will be waiting.  
-See… that’s the problem, Jade. I don’t want you to be. I want you to date and be happy and live your life and not wait on me to get my shit together. If we are meant to be, we will. But knowing that you’re out there waiting for me would just be unfair. You can’t very well spend your life waiting on your life’s falling pieces to find the right places. And believe me, the want for some ravaging is mutual whenever I think about you.  
-Sorry babe, but we are circling the pyro portion of my feelings right now.  
-Fair enough. I gotta get to sleep; lots of homework to deal with, but I will talk to you later.  
-Bye.  
And just like that, after two months of uncertainty and disappointment, with a nearly two hour chatting session, it was official. She was completely single, and yet was still going to open her house to her now ex-boyfriend and his friends. Jade took a deep breath and shut the laptop lid and slid it onto her dresser, sliding back into Tori’s embrace as the Latina teen woke up.  
“Jade?”  
“Yeah, Vega?”  
“Sorry for ruining our little-“  
“It’s cool. I really don’t even know how it got started. You could make it up to me though by telling me what’s going on,” she said, half joking, as she stroked Tori’s hair.  
“I don’t know, Jade… tonight has been one of the best and worst nights of my life all at once.”  
“Well, you could tell me about all the bad stuff and then talk about the good to ease yourself out of it.”  
Tori took a deep breath before spilling everything, “I might as well start at the top. So, I went on a date with Nate tonight. Had a good dinner and went to an amazing concert. I liked him, and I guess I still do, but I don’t really know about anything for sure. Anyway, I came home to Beck and Trina having sex.”  
Jade’s eyes went wide with utter disbelief. All the time she and Beck had dated, the two of them had mocked Trina constantly and the idea of the two of them together just blew her mind.  
“I’m so sorry, sweetie,” Jade said, unsure of what else to say, and pulled Tori closer in her embrace.  
“I guess it’s just one of those things. I ended things with Beck forever, and I guess I have to face Trina at some point, but tonight’s not that night for sure.” Tori nuzzled her face into Jade’s chest. “I just want to stay in this bed with you until I can’t feel these feelings anymore”  
“Somehow I’m ok with that…” Jade said, grinning and pulling Tori’s chin upwards for a short kiss. “You’re sure about this, Vega? I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I don’t want to take advantage of you. At least, not in this state.”  
Tori sighed with the heave of Jade’s breasts, and she slid closer to Jade. “Jade, I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. I don’t really want to have a night like we had the other day. I kinda just wanted to cuddle, you know? Just hold someone who wasn’t going to betray me and be held by someone I cared for.”  
“Eh… I can live with that,” Jade said, turning the lamp off and snuggling into bed, wrapping her arms around Tori as they both drifted off to a surprisingly peaceful sleep.  
________________________________________________________________________

Tori spent the next three nights at Jade’s house, only visiting her own to get clothes and other essentials. For the most part, the visits were completely uneventful, things only getting awkward when Tori would see her sister, who would then hide in her room until Tori left. Beck called a couple times, but she let them go to voicemail. Despite Jade’s advice, Tori didn’t want to delete them because he sounded very sincere with how sorry he was. Nate called a few times as well, and while she didn’t ignore the calls, she kept them relatively short, never really saying much.  
School was the worst part without a doubt. She had one class with Trina, but it was the three with Beck that caused her to want to scream inside. They would share a glance, and it would fill her with ten different emotions all at once, and she’d have to go to the bathroom to collect herself. She found herself being more and more thankful for her friendship with Jade, and that thankfulness led to their sleepovers becoming a bit more physical than either had expected. The only reason that Tori returned home was because her parents made her, promising to ground her if she didn’t stay home for a while. She considered explaining what happened to her parents, but the can of worms that would be opened would be too great and her dad would completely lose it. She and Jade would hang out at Tori’s house for a few more days before both girls decided to take a day or two without each other.  
Tori wasn’t the only person to feel like they were going through absolute hell. After being shunned by Cat and embarrassed by Trina, Robbie had become incredibly fragile and despite his destruction of the bully puppet, Rex was still haunting him in his head. Robbie was prone to snap at his friends, but in the process of trying to get over all his problems, he had gotten to be better friends with Andre and Nate. After hearing that Trina had slept with Beck, Robbie became sick to his stomach and actually didn’t come to class the next day.  
Cat, of course, was really sad that Robbie didn’t want to talk to her at all, and she internalized her feelings and distanced herself from the group, believing her sexuality was the reason that he pushed her away, and that the others would do the same. Her pain was doubled when she realized that Jade, the person she long believed to be her true love, was now spending her nights with Tori.  
Jade was doing surprisingly well considering getting dumped, but Freddie had really done it in a way that made her feel like it was going to be ok, and she was thankful that he wanted to try and be friends, the possibility of reconciliation hanging over them. Any bad feelings she had, she hid them from the others and used Tori as a distraction from her problems. It felt weird for the Goth teen to be spending all her time with a person she wanted to kill a year ago, but Jade couldn’t imagine a better friend, and she was happy with the current arrangement. No relationships or feelings; just two friends having a good time and escaping from the banality of everyday life. And having her parents buy her a whole new phone certainly didn’t hurt.  
Beck spent the next week sulking for the most part, his shame overwhelming him even more when his friends began to shun him for his actions. Even Trina ran from him when he tried to approach her, believing that as pariahs they could get along, but Trina was more focused on redemption and making her sister not hate her. For Beck, the worst part was that he didn’t have an escape. The night he left the Vega house after Tori caught him, he’d taken all of his pills, and finished off all the bottles. He’s lucky he recovered from mixing the drugs in such a dangerous way, but now that they were gone, he was forced to face reality. His nights were filled with visions of what Tori was doing, imagining her in the arms of Jade or Nate, both versions driving him mad with anger and despair. He made a promise to try and make her love him again, and swore vengeance on Jade and Nate, believing them to be responsible for turning Tori against him.  
Andre spent an afternoon with Tori a few days after the incident, and tried to reaffirm his role as her friend and let her know that she had his full support, and while Beck was his “boy,” he had really crossed a line here. Tori couldn’t stop herself from revealing the whole story to him, from the rough sex, to the actual violence, to Jade, to her date with Nate. Hearing the whole story gave Andre some clarity and made him see that this wasn’t coming from nowhere as he had originally thought. He considered talking to Beck and getting his version, but right now, it was clear that Tori needed to know she had friends.   
Nate was exhausted with the whole concept of trying to win Tori’s heart. They had an amazing date, and that flew out the window for some reason. Everyone seemed to know something that he didn’t which was normal since he was the new guy, but he felt like there was something huge and Tori certainly wasn’t talking to him about it. All she seemed to do lately was hang out with that Jade chick, and while there were plenty of other girls at the school, his mind was focused on Tori Vega. He knew he might be in trouble when both Robbie and Andre suddenly found reasons for him not to pursue her, but he couldn’t help it and had to try.  
_____________________________________________________________________

It had been a full week since the breakup became final, and the more Tori thought about it, the worse she felt. She didn’t exactly have the moral high ground, and with Jade in the mix, she knew she wasn’t going down a path she would be proud of when she finally came out of this.  
Jade had talked her into going out to a rock club, and after dressing Tori to fit the part of the place, the two girls went on their way. Jade, sporting a few colored strips in her hair, was dressed in a black t-shirt with a V-neck rip, showing off her cleavage with a black vest, tight black jeans, and jet black boots. Tori had a similar look, but was more conservative; her shirt being un-torn, but her black jeans hand holes in them, showing her tanned legs. Jade could tell Tori had a lot on her mind and figured loud music and dancing would change her disposition and get her out of this slump. As they pushed by the groups congregated at the entrance, they made it to the center of the crowd and started leisurely dancing, trying to get the feel of the music. It took a few songs, but when the right one came they found their sync.  
Andrew WK’s “You Will Remember Tonight,” a somewhat telling title, really, was the song that kicked them into gear. The two girls jumped up and down in place, an activity that earned Jade some glances from guys nearby as her chest had quite a bit of bounce to it. Jade knew the looks that she was getting, and in the middle of the crowd, pressed her body against Tori’s so that all the jumping and rocking pressed their figures closer and closer together, sending a clear signal that guys were not on this girl’s menu. As they got closer, she could tell that Tori was a little uncomfortable with the PDA, but the Latina teen did seem to be laughing and smiling a lot more than usual.  
“You should relax, Vega. You look really hot!” Jade said, trying to speak over the crowd and the music.  
“I wish I could. You know how us doing that kind of thing in front of people makes me nervous.”  
“Yeah, I remember you pushing me into my car, as we kissed outside of it, because you thought someone was walking towards us. Tori, we are girls. Girls do this kind of thing all the time and no one thinks twice.”  
“Maybe you don’t but I can’t help but think about what others think,” Tori said as her dancing slowed.  
Some Disturbed number came up next, and the heavy dancing ceased for a bit, allowing the girls to talk a bit as they casually moved.  
“So, you don’t want to dance with me? That’s cool… We can find some guys here-“  
“It’s not that, Jade. I’m having a really good time… I just feel awkward because some people were staring.”  
“They weren’t staring at us because of that, Vega. I know exactly why they were staring. I’m rocking like a foot of cleavage and my tits move when I move, and don’t act like you didn’t know that. Guys like to look, and I know I look like a whore, but I’m just wanting attention.”  
“Is that why we have… you know… because you just want attention?” Tori hadn’t meant for the question to come out like it did, but once it was out, she had no choice.  
Jade was taken aback for a moment, “No way, Vega. We are friends and we have physical needs and we just work things out and we have a good time. Like I keep telling you, we aren’t cheating or anything.”  
“So you’re just doing me just to do me. Just like Beck was with Trina? Jade-“  
“Stop right there!” Jade said, grabbing Tori’s arm and pulling her to a nearby wall so that she could focus on their conversation. “Look, don’t you dare compare me to them. We aren’t-“  
“Jade… I didn’t mean it like that. I love you and you’re my best friend, but I sometimes get confused about what we are doing.”  
“Do you want to stop?” Jade asked, sighing and taking Tori’s hands in her own.  
“No,” she quickly said, and retracted it, “well, I don’t know. I-“  
“LOOK AT THOSE LESBOS!”  
The two girls looked over on the dance floor to see two guys in their early twenties, one of which Jade remembered from watching her dance.  
“HEY… MAKE OUT! I’LL GIVE YOU TEN BUCKS TO STICK YOUR TONGUE HER MOUTH!”  
Jade pulled from Tori and walked over to the guys, her sickly sweet smile plastered across her face.  
“You want us to kiss each other for money? Do you like that kind of thing?”  
“Fuck yeah!” they said in drunken unison.  
“Have you ever seen two girls make out before?”  
“No…” said one of them, before adding “at least none as fucking hot as you.”  
“Aren’t you just the sweetest? Well, guys… that’s my sister… my ‘twin’ sister, over there, so it’s gonna need to be more a lot more than just ten bucks, gentlemen. I mean, we are ladies with standards, you know.”  
The two drunks searched their wallets while Jade told Tori what the situation was, and made sure she was ok with it. She whispered a plan in Tori’s ear, before sauntering over to the guys again.  
“We have 96 dollars… Please let us watch you girls kiss. Could you play with each other too?”  
Jade nodded slowly. “You could watch us do more than that for that much money… but why don’t we go somewhere private like that broom closet,” Jade pointed behind Tori at the door and motioned them towards it. They handed her the wad of cash which Jade slid into her cleavage sensuously, and it was clear one of them was already sporting an erection.  
Tori opened the door of the darkened room, grabbed a broom from inside and stood by one of the double doors as Jade led the guys into the darkness.  
“Could you boys do one thing first?”  
“Sure… anything, baby.”  
“Well, first, don’t call me baby. And two,” Jade said slipping back outside the door with Tori, “check out porn the next time you want to see this sick shit!”  
Jade slid out just as the doors shut and the guys tackled the door in the dark. Tori threw the broom through the handles and took a deep breath, hearing a crash and shouting several obscenities inside.  
“And what was the point of that?”  
“I don’t like it when people disrespect me… or you.”  
“They were just a couple drunks, Jade. And it’s not like we weren’t acting like we were-“  
“Like we were what, Vega? Like we were friends who have a good time? I made us $96, and I was going to split it with you, but now-“  
“Jade…”  
“I knew you cared about the money, Vega,” Jade said, smiling. Her bright white teeth contrasted amazingly with her dark red, almost blood colored, lips.  
“I think this was a mistake Jade. I don’t really feel comfortable right now. Those guys are gonna get out soon, and I feel really out of place here. This is even more awkward than the Gorilla Club.”  
“Fine… let’s get out of here and go back to my place. I think I know of a way or two to make you feel better…”  
“Actually, I think I’m just gonna go home. I’m really tired.”  
“Did I-“  
“It’s not you, Jade. I guess I’m getting a rush of reality and my stomach is really twisted. I don’t know what’s up but I will hang out tomorrow. I think I just need to sleep.”  
“Ok… let’s go. I will hang on to the money… maybe I’ll buy you some rocker chick clothes so you’re not stuck wearing mine next time.”  
“Next time?” Tori gulped with a nervous grin.  
“Oh, yeah… there’s always a next time.”  
The two drove in silence for several minutes before Jade finally spoke up again.   
“You kinda disappointed me Vega.”  
“Ummm… ok. How?”  
“Well,” Jade pulled into an empty parking lot, parking, and turned to Tori, “I was really wanting to take you back to my place. Rip those old clothes off you. You do the same to me… I know you were staring at my rack as much as those guys tonight. I was thinking,” Jade slid over towards the nervous Latina, whispering in her ear, “about how our naked bodies would be covered in sweat and we’d have to clean up with a shower. And you know how lonely I get in that shower…”  
Tori’s eyes closed as she felt Jade’s lips on her earlobe, eliciting a small moan.  
“And after we get clean, we would get dirty again. I think you like that part, don’t you?” Jade loved the way Tori was reacting as the thin teen nodded to the clearly rhetorical question. “I was thinking you were so hot and sexy and fucking gorgeous that I might want to taste that sex.”  
Tori licked her lips sensuously.  
“Where would you say that I could taste you the most? Here?” Jade’s fingers ran over Tori’s lips sensuously before lowering down to her chest. “Or here?” Tori’s nipples were very hard, and Jade loved running her thumbs over the points as Tori bit her lip. “Or…” Jade’s hand rushed down Tori’s midsection to the massive heat and moistness between Tori’s legs. “Oh I think we have a winner.” Tori nodded weakly as Jade slid her tongue out licking Tori’s sensitive neck. “You want me to shove my hot, spongy and very wet tongue deep inside your pretty pink pussy, Vega?”  
Jade stroked the front of Tori’s pants as she moaned, as if to plead for her to either stop or to stop teasing her.   
“Are you sure you want to go home now, Vega?” she whispered, kissing Tori’s neck while she applied pressure to her core.  
Tori was about to respond when there were a knock on Jade’s car window that scared both girls half to death. They got very nervous when they saw it was a cop, but felt relief that it wasn’t one of the drunk guys. This relief disappeared with the cop turned out to be none other than Mr. Vega.  
Jade didn’t have to roll her window down to her him shout, “Victoria! Car. Now!”  
Tori said nothing as she bolted from the car and her father opened the back of his squad car, and after a very angry look was exchanged by Jade and Sgt. Vega, the police car took off full speed.  
Jade cursed to herself in her car punching the steering wheel as hard as she could.  
_____________________________________________________________________

Not surprisingly, the Vegas were incredibly upset when her dad brought Tori home and explained what Tori was doing when he found her. They told her that their sleepovers were over and that she was not welcome at the house anytime soon. Tori tried to fight back, but she just got herself in deeper and deeper trouble. The real death knell came when they told her how disappointed they were in her and that they thought she was raised better than that. The shame and disappointment rained down all over her, and it stung even more as tears streamed down her embarrassed face.   
Trina watched the big blowup from the stairs, seeing that this was what Beck was talking about that night. Was her sister gay, she thought. Is that why she wasn’t satisfied with Beck? As Tori rose from the couch, practically a zombie from her exhaustion, Trina retreated back to her room, and just said a soft “I’m sorry” as Tori went in her room before slamming the door behind her.  
Tori’s phone buzzed and she raced to check it, seeing that she had missed a call and four texts from Jade. She scrolled through them quickly, planning a single response to them all.  
-You ok?  
-I’m sorry about your dad. I shouldn’t have acted like that.  
-Tori, I miss you and please text me when you get this.  
-Are you mad at me?  
Tori texted her that she wasn’t mad but her parents really were. She explained that Jade wasn’t welcome there anymore and that they couldn’t have sleepovers anymore. Tori waited for several minutes before she just got a single response.  
-K  
And that was the last she heard from Jade until school on Monday. But that wasn’t the most intense moment that happened inside the Vega house that weekend by a longshot.  
_____________________________________________________________________

Tori came down for lunch the next day, trying to avoid eye contact with both her mom, since her dad was out on patrol, and her sister. As she choked down the ham sandwich and some chips, Tori tried not to let any of them see how miserable she was, and she never said a word. She would have retreated back to her room until the next meal if there hadn’t been a knock on the door.  
Mrs. Vega headed over to the door, knowing that Gary, her husband’s partner, was going to stop by to pick her up and see a movie, but was sorely disappointed when it was revealed Robbie was behind the door. Upon seeing her former beau, Trina took off up the stairs before he could see her. Mrs. Vega was just about to shut the door when she heard a car honk. She didn’t say a word as she grabbed her purse and ran out the door, leaving Tori sitting at the dinner table by herself while Robbie awkwardly stood in the den.  
“So… you doing ok?”  
“I’m fine, Robbie… why wouldn’t I be?”  
“I don’t know… we haven’t really talked much since you and Beck split up… and I guess I was in the neighborhood and just wanted to check on you,” he said, sitting down on the couch as she walked over and sat across from him.  
“I’m fine… really. You, and everyone else, have been really supportive, but I’m fine now.”  
“You’ll forgive me Tori, but you don’t look fine. You look absolutely awful and you’ve clearly been crying. Just tell me what’s up.”  
“Robbie, you’re a good guy… I promise that I’m past this whole Beck thing.”  
“What about Nate? That guy won’t stop talking about you, especially after you guys had that date-“  
“It wasn’t a date.”  
“Tori, he bought you dinner and took you to a concert and you kissed him-  
“On the cheek.”  
“… but you kissed him nonetheless. That was a date. Just admit it.”  
Tori sighed heavily, sinking into the chair cushion, knowing that Robbie was right, but not wanting to admit that to him. He did become pretty big headed when he was proven right about stuff. “Fine. It was a date.”  
“See? Was that so hard?”  
“Yeah… but I don’t know if I like him like that. He’s nice and he’s sweet, but I think I just want to be single for a while.”  
“You have to get back on the horse at some point, and as much as I have crushed on you, I can say with all honesty that Nate’s a good guy for you.”  
“Robbie, I’m sorry but don’t push me into dating that guy. My life isn’t some tv show where all the feelings get wrapped up and I start anew tomorrow. I wish it was, but I really think I need some actual time to breathe. Ok?”  
“Ok… if you ever want to talk though-“  
“I will let you know.”  
“Actually,” Robbie said, shrugging, “I was going to tell you to talk to him.”  
“That’s it, Robbie! Out!”  
“Wait!”  
Tori and Robbie looked over at the stairs where Trina had called out from, both unsure of how to respond or even if what she had to say was worth listening to,  
“Tori, you’re my sister and I’d like to talk to you later but I really want to talk to Robbie right now.”  
Tori looked over at Robbie as if to ask if this was ok with him, and he nodded, and Tori ran up the stairs leaving the two former lovers face to face.  
“Look, Robbie-“  
“No… you’re going to listen to me first.”  
“I just-“  
“I’m going to say my peace, and then when I get done, then I will hear you out. That’s the only way that I will stand here and listen to you. Deal?”  
Trina nodded slowly and stood by the end of the stairs.  
“Ok, I’m going to start with the most recent knife you shoved into my back. You fucked my best friend. Or at least he used to be. I know we aren’t dating and haven’t been… maybe ever, but that seriously upset me. I was crazy about you, Trina. I was willing to hide in places and sneak around to see you, and not a lot of guys would have the patience to deal with that kind of thing, but you know what? I sucked it up because I really liked you and I believed in you and I believed that you would change and we could be happy. But I was wrong, wasn’t I? I was sooooo wrong about you. You were just a shallow cunt that threw me under the bus and then ran me over with it.” He stopped for a moment, seeing her face flare up, knowing tears were about to come, wondering if he should have dropped that c-bomb. “You told everyone I essentially raped you. Even for you, that was low, and while everyone knows the truth now, there is still that air of ‘maybe he really is’ that I get in every look from everyone at school. And that’s on you.”  
“But I have paid for that-“  
“No. you haven’t… and wait. I’m not done yet. The worst part of all of this is that I actually pity you now. Everyone at school already knew you were completely untalented, but in the last month you have shown everyone that you are a liar, a whore, and just complete and utter shit. Ok… that’s my two cents. Now spill whatever you have to say so I can leave.”  
Trina was fighting back her tears, desperately trying to keep it together after this total verbal assault. Taking a deep breath, she responded as best she could.  
“I’m sorry.”  
“That’s it? All you have is-“  
“Look, I’m sorry. There’s no excuse for what I did and nobody hates me more than I hate myself right now. I freaked out that day we were caught and reverted back to being that awful selfish person that I was before we got together. I’m sorry about the Beck thing. It happened and I have never felt more disgusted with myself that I let it happen. I thought of you the whole time.”  
“Oh yeah… that makes me feel so much better, Trina.”  
“What do you want me to say, Robbie? I fucked up. Royally. I hate the way things are right now and I missed you. Especially as my boyfriend, but I really just miss my friend more than anything else. I was scared and alone and everyone hated me, and I drank a bit and he called me pretty, and I was so low that I just let it happen. It was my biggest low point in my life.”  
“Well, be that as it may, our relationship, or whatever it was, because it sure wasn’t a real relationship is over and there’s no going back to that. But I guess with time, maybe we could be friends again. I don’t know.”   
“We could at least share the same space without you wanting to strangle me,” Trina said, the first tears falling from her eyes as she moved towards Robbie.  
He took a step back as he spoke, “I don’t want to strangle you, Trina. At least, not anymore. I’m just disappointed and hurt. You are a very good looking girl and I’m just a weird nerd. I thought I had hit the jackpot with you and when everything came crashing down, I was left alone and I felt like I wanted to die. I mean, for a while, I actually blamed myself for what happened. But anyway… look, I don’t hate you and I still care a lot, but we aren’t going to be friends for a while, so I will just talk to you when that time comes.” Inside, Robbie was struggling. He wanted to tell her he still cared for her and he wanted to get back with her, especially since Cat fell through, but he remained strong and resisted the lonely urges.  
“Ok… I will talk to you then, Robbie.” Trina went in for a hug, but her turned and walked out the door, leaving her alone with her tears, which poured out once she knew she was out of sight. She turned and went back up the stairs, her mind racing with what to say to her sister.  
As she rounded the hall to the bedrooms, she heard Tori over her shoulder.  
“I forgive you.”  
“What?”  
“Yeah…” Tori leaned her head against her bedroom doorframe. “I heard what you were saying down there. I’m not happy and I certainly don’t like that it happened, but I understand what you did. I did the same thing with Jade when Beck and I had a fight, so I get it. I don’t really want to talk anymore, but you’re my sister and we should be able to move on.”  
“Tori, thank you so-“  
“I’m probably going to hold this over you for a long time, but I think the way you handled yourself when Robbie was going off, which he had every right to, was really adult and you could have ran away and hid like you have the last several days, but you took it and I don’t want to pile on you with everything. I hardly have the right to cast the first stone in this situation, so we’re cool.”  
Trina rushed and hugged her sister tight before Tori walked back her room, shutting the bedroom door behind her.  
______________________________________________________________________

It took three days for Tori and Trina to actually have a conversation again, and when the subject matter in the car turned to boys, Trina seemed guarded, but certainly her normal self.  
“So you’re telling me that the guy you’ve been dangling for weeks is the son of the Jeremiah Shepherd? The movie producer?”  
“Yeah… why?” Tori said  
“Because he’s Jeremiah Shepherd… and he is probably looking for talent for his next movie, which I know I would be perfect for.”  
“Trina…”  
“I’m serious. If you don’t want to date that guy, just give him to me. I would certainly take advantage over some hot rich guy fawning all over me if you won’t.” Inside, Trina was a bit worried her words were going to loop around to the Beck thing, but luckily, Tori didn’t seem to notice.  
“And I’m sure Nate would appreciate having someone who is just there for those reasons.”  
“Well, why aren’t you dating him then?”  
“I don’t know… I just think I need to be single for a while.”  
“I don’t understand how we could be siblings…”  
Tori just shook her head at her sister as they drove to school. Trina had a point. Nate was an all around good guy, but she just was dragging her feet on giving him a chance for some reason. The thought crossed her mind several times during the first few classes, and she was confronted right before lunch.  
“Hey, Tori.”  
“Nate… heyyyy… how’s it going?”  
“Eh, I can’t really complain. How about you?”  
“I’m… surviving, I guess.”  
“Well, that’s as good as anything, I s’pose. Look, I know something has been going on, and I know we haven’t exactly crossed that friend line where we tell each other stuff, but I just wanted to say that I was here if you wanted to talk.”  
“Well, I appreciate that, Nate.”  
“I’m especially here if you’re free Friday night. Maybe have dinner together and hang out or whatever.”  
“I can’t, Nate… I’m sorry.” She saw his head droop and Tori started to respond but her phone started buzzing. “Sorry…”   
“It’s fine. I figured it was worth a shot,” he said before starting to walk away.  
A quick look down alerted Tori that it was Beck calling her. She took only a second before looking back up at Nate, and then hitting the ignore button.  
“I can’t Friday… but how about… Saturday?” she said, earning a smile from Nate, which caused her to smile back. I deserve to be happy, she thought, as she threw her books in her locker and headed out to meet all her friends.  
________________________________________________________________________


End file.
